A Wish From the Heart
by The Spider
Summary: COMPLETE! After defeating Naraku, Inuyasha demands the Shikon jewel. Once he gets it he seems to make a wish, but nothing happened? Did he make a wish? Did the jewel refuse to grant it? IYKag MirSan
1. Prologue

**If you're reading this then this is your first time here or you've gone back re-read this. At this time, 7/10/05, I have revised the Prologue up to Chapter 3. Later I will do some revisions on 4 and 5 and possibly others. So to new people, you get to read the better version 2 of these chapters. All notes have been left alone otherwise. Enjoy.**

Hello everyone. This isn't my first fanfic but it is my first Inuyasha fanfic so please be nice. I have seen both the English version of IY and the subbed versions so if I mix and match stuff, don't get made at me. I don't speech Japanese or anything so don't expect too many Japanese words. And if any notices I am the crazy person that put up the small plea to people from before. This is a real story though.

Things might be a bit rushed at times and I apologize but I believe its length will be okay as it is. This story isn't completed yet, I have the first 5 chapters and the prologue written already though. I hope you enjoy the story. There will be some action later on. This will mostly be Romance and Drama.

Disclaimer: I still live at home and I'm in college. You expect me to own Inuyasha. I don't so just get on reading the story.

Prologue

Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara looked on at the castle in front of them. After all their travels, arguments, and fights with other demons, they had finally reached their goal. It had taken almost three years for them to reach it. So many battles, so many lives, all because of one man, Naraku. He had done everything he possibly could to keep them from getting to this point but they had preserved. For all the lives taken from them before they had met and during, Naraku would pay for every last crime. His castle was just in front of them. Soon their final battle with Naraku would begin. A deep and deafening silence held between them all. All of them held their own thoughts on Naraku's destruction. To each member of the group it would bring some semblance of peace.

As Inuyasha looked down the his worst enemies dwelling, he was reminded of Kikyo. Naraku had killed Kikyo more then 50 years ago and framed him as well. Then shortly after getting released from his slumber, Kikyo was revived but not as the woman he once knew. It started a long road of love, hurt, and betrayal that lasted until Kikyo was once again killed by Naraku only months earlier. Since then he had been on a non-stop hunt for Naraku. The others understood his pain. In some ways the others were there right beside him in the constant hunt while in other ways they worried for him – especially Kagome. While they tried to hide it, he could tell. He wasn't totally sure of Kagome feelings at this point or what she would do when this battle was over but he couldn't let himself be distracted by that. He vowed to himself that he would sort everything out afterwards, no matter how much his head would hurt from it.

Kagome was thinking about Inuyasha in many different aspects. She didn't know if this would help him fully get over Kikyo's death but it would be a start to put that part of him to rest. She was worried though that he might let his anger for Naraku take over and possibly cause him some inner turmoil. Inuyasha was always so conflicted when his demon side took over even if he didn't hurt any innocent people. Kagome also knew it was selfish but she wondered about her place in Inuyasha's life. She wasn't sure how he felt or if there would ever be enough room in his heart for her. All she cared about though was that she was by his side – no matter what happened.

Miroku didn't need to search his memory for thoughts of Naraku. With one look at his clothed hand, they came to him. The knowledge that his grandfather had been cursed by Naraku, that he had watched his father die from the same curse that now threatened him. He knew that because of his travels with Inuyasha and their fights against Naraku his Wind Tunnel (Kazaana) would not hold out much longer. He promised though that if he knew he couldn't win this battle he would show Naraku what laid beyond the blackness in his hand. Miroku, though, wasn't just thinking about these horrors. He also thought about the possibility of winning. He was thinking that if they won this battle, he would finally be free of his curse. Maybe then, there would be no rush to ask women to bear his child, instead he could get to know them especially the one he was so fond of.

Sango thought of how she could finally get revenge for her people. They would be able to rest in peace, especially Kohaku. She remembered how just two months ago, Kohaku had come and attacked them. They were able to win the battle without hurting him but instead of leaving at the end, Naraku decided just to take the jewel shard back. Sango held her brother for 5 minutes while he slowly slipped away from life. He was still blaming himself for the death of their father and villagers. There was nothing anyone could do for the boy. Even Kagome with her future medicine could not help the boy as he died slowly in front of their eyes. It was after that, that she took Kohaku and got the rest of her people that had died at Naraku's first castle to her village and buried them with the rest of the villagers. Miroku had been kind to do another funeral. Today, Sango was going to make sure that Naraku paid for all the people he killed. She vowed that even if she died, she would make sure she took Naraku with her.

Shippo's thoughts weren't as grim as everyone else's. While he hadn't started out with any hatred towards Naraku, he didn't even know the guy, Shippo knew that they would have to put an end to Naraku's terror. He was still surprised that they had finally reached their enemies castle. He thought that his parents would have been proud to see him now. Even if they were a little afraid for his safety, they would be proud that he had come so far and was part of this battle. He had been through so much with his friends that he would see this battle to the end.

Everyone stood in silence for a while until Inuyasha finally spoke up without any emotion, "let's go. It's time to end this once and for all." No one said anything in response; they just followed him as he walked towards the castle. Their final battle with Naraku was going to begin.

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Well that's the prologue. I hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be the end of the battle with Naraku. I'm just warning you, I'm not going to write this huge battle except for the end of it. After the battle with Naraku is where the plot of the story starts to kick in. I really hope you enjoy it. Later.

-Spider

Please review.


	2. Chapter 1 The End of a Quest

Welcome back for the next chapter of "A Wish from the Heart." As everyone noticed the prologue was short but then again it was suppose to be short. It just sets the scene. Since I got so many reviews on that small bit I updated within a day. My usual chapters are longer but this isn't one of my normal stories. Just letting everyone know until we reach chapter six I will probably update this story about every other day. This is because I have only written up to chapter six. This is going to be about a 20 chapter fic. but then again I'm just assuming that at this point.

As I said before I don't own Inuyasha. I just have him on loan from the great Rumiko Takahashi.

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**A Wish From the Heart**

Chapter 1: The End of a Quest

The ultimate battle had not gone totally as planned but the group was still alive and fighting. Naraku's castle was filled with traps and many lower demons. While they were easy to defeat, Naraku was using them to wear down the group.

When all those demons were gone, their next obstacle was Kanna. It took them a bit to get past her defenses. Every attack they threw at her was blocked or repelled back at them thanks to her mirror. Finally when Kagome and Inuyasha attacked together they were able to break the mirror and with it Kanna's defenses. Even then Kanna didn't run, she sacrificed her life just to keep the group from getting to Naraku.

The group pressed on to find Kagura waiting for them. She had been angry at the loss of her sister but she still fought them skillfully. She was on the defense for the most part. She did attack often but when she had a chance she continued to back up through the mansion. This didn't stop everyone for a second, even if it had been for a trap. They had come this far and weren't about to stop just because of the chance of a trap. During the fight, Kouga showed up to help fight. Inuyasha didn't even bother to think about his presence. After retreating for a while, they stumbled upon Naraku.

The group split up Inuyasha, Kagome, and Miroku fought Naraku while Kouga, Sango, and Kirara fought Kagura. It was at this time that Kagura fought intensely. She kept as much distance between her and the others. At the same time her attention was diverted every now and then to Naraku.

Finally Kagura saw her chance after she had knocked Sango out of the air. Kouga was chasing up to her but with a broken arm from their fighting she easily slipped away. Kagura pulled out her feather from her hair and took to the air. She quickly flew away from the battle as fast as she could. Naraku saw her take off but could do nothing to stop her as he was engaged in battle with Inuyasha.

The battle continued to preserve for what seemed like hours. Naraku had tried to escape a few times but found himself thwarted at each turn. The long battle had consequences though as it went on the number of combatants dropped due to injury or unconsciousness.

It was now down to Inuyasha vs. Naraku. The battle had between them had been intense but Naraku had kept the upper hand having most of the Shikon Jewel in his possession. The only pieces he didn't have was those that Kagome held.

"Do you really think you can beat me?" Naraku asked.

"I'm not going to beat you," Inuyasha replied, "I'm going to kill you." He yelled as he charged at Naraku. Inuyasha swung Tetsusaiga at Naraku but he dodged it at the last second and hit Inuyasha while he was defenseless. Inuyasha was sent flying through the air but twisted and landed on his feet facing Naraku.

"I'm about tired of this," Naraku said as he held the Shikon Jewel in his hand. It started to glow a dark purple and miasma started to cloud around him. "This fight ends now."

Inuyasha could tell that Naraku was making a final attack to finish all of them off. Inuyasha looked around the courtyard. Everyone else was too injured to help him fight. Even Kouga, who had taken a few extra hits after Kagura's escape was too injured to count on. It was up to him. He wasn't about to let all the friends he had made die at the hand of this despicable demon when he had the chance to stop him. Inuyasha lifted Tetsusaiga up to fight Naraku one last time. He remembered all the pain and suffering Naraku had caused, to both him and his friends. Inuyasha felt himself filled with new energy as he got ready to swing his sword, "I couldn't agree with you more. It's time to finish this fight." With that Inuyasha swung Tetsusaiga. Naraku found his attack meant nothing to Inuyasha's. A wave of energy seemed to overwhelm Naraku. One streak of energy seemed to be coming straight at him he tried to move to avoid it but found himself paralyzed by the first wave and was defenseless against the second assault. When the streak of energy hit him, everything around him and he, himself, exploded. Inuyasha couldn't believe what had just happened. He had never seen that attack before. He kept a careful eye to see if Naraku was around but he didn't see him anywhere or sense him. Naraku was dead. They had finally won.

"Inuyasha, you did it," Kagome said from behind him. She was walking over to him slowly. She had been knocked unconscious earlier and had woken up just in time to see him defeat Naraku.

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly though he was barely able to stand.

"I'll be fine. What about the others?" Kagome asked as she looked around. Shippo who had been knocked unconscious with Kagome was just waking up. Miroku was making his way to see if Sango was okay. He had some cut on his body but he was mainly weak because he sucked up some more of Naraku's poisonous bees. Sango had a few more cuts on her body than Miroku but also suffered from a dislocated shoulder. Miroku kindly offered his help to her as they walked over to the rest of the group. Kouga was hobbling over to them. In addition to the broken arm, during the battle Naraku had injured one of Kouga's legs and had taken both of the jewel shards.

Once everyone was together there was a bit of silence but Sango decided to break it with the question that many of them had, "Is Naraku really dead?"

"I think so," Inuyasha said. "I can't sense him anywhere. Besides ask the pervert to be sure," He said gruffly as he pointed at Miroku.

Miroku didn't understand at first but then remembered his Kazanna. He slowly backed away from everyone and pointed his hand in another direction as a precaution. When he removed the beads and cloth from his hand, there were no gusting winds pulling anything in. Instead everything remained as it was; Miroku slowly turned his hand to himself and saw a regular full hand, no hole in the middle. He didn't say anything but showed his friends. Everyone was happy, Naraku was finally dead.

"What are we going to do now?" Shippo asked.

"Where going to leave this horrible place and rest, I don't care if its one foot step outside of this place but I'm not resting here," Inuyasha said. Everyone agreed and they walked out of the castle. Once they were away from the castle they decided to stop and tend to everyone's wounds. The only ones that really required attention was Sango and Miroku. Inuyasha had received some bad wounds but they were already starting to heal thanks to his demon abilities. Kouga was the same way. Though it was a bit painful, they did relocate Sango's arm and had it in a makeshift sling. Miroku's wounds were patched up and Kagome gave him some medicine for the poison.

"I don't know about you guys but I'm tired," Miroku said. "That battle took more out of me than I thought." Everyone seemed to nod in agreement except for Shippo who was already sleeping.

"I just want to know one thing, dog turd," Kouga spoke up. Inuyasha didn't like hearing that name but was too tired to fight him at the moment. Kouga continued, "What was that attack that you used on Naraku?"

Kagome turned to Inuyasha as well, "Yeah, I haven't seen that attack before. What is it?"

Inuyasha just turned to them and said bluntly, "I don't know." Everyone sweat dropped.

"I might know," a voice called out. Everyone knew who that belonged to and looked at Inuyasha as he squished the flea that was on his nose.

"Well look who it is," Inuyasha said. "I didn't think you'd be anywhere near by to see that attack."

"Actually I had heard you were going after Naraku and was on my way," Myouga explained.

"Sure, you were probably just watching from a nice safe distance," Inuyasha yelled at him. "Anyway so what's this attack?"

"Do you remember when Tetsusaiga broke?" Inuyasha nodded. "It had to be repaired with one of your fangs. So part of you was in the blade. When Tetsusaiga was created, it was only part of your father's fang; he was able to use Kaze no Kizu and Bakuryuuha because they used the power of his fang. When your fang was added, your power was added to the sword and that attack is the result."

"Really," was all Inuyasha had to say. He couldn't think of much more.

"As far as I could tell and sense, the attack doesn't just draw from your own power but it also seemed to draw power from your friends around you, which made the attack even more powerful."

"That's cool," Kagome said. She then turned to Inuyasha, "since it's a new attack I guess you get to name it. What are you going to call it?"

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Well that concludes the first chapter. Some of you might be mad at me because I ended it there but I did that for a reason. The reason is that I don't actually have a name for the attack. I want you, my readers to name it. If anyone knows good Japanese and can think up a good name please tell me. If you do give me it in Japanese, tell me the English translation that way I'm not making an idiot out of myself by using it. If you have a regular English name let me know. I'll use the one that I think sounds the best.

I want to thank my reviewers now: kuroi raishu, anonymous, candy, Alyssa, Hino Mitsukiko, and RyGuy. Thank you all very much. Now for a bit more in-depth:

anonymous - Don't worry there is going to be no Kikyo (I wish I could have killed her in this fic but I would have to write a bit of back story for that). As for Action, this story is going to be more on the side of drama but there will be certain action chapters. This one for instance. As I have it planned now, there will be 2 more fight scenes. One is a one chapter, the other might be longer. I'll see when I get there.

Hino Mitsukiko - I have seen both dubbed version and subbed so my views are a little blended as you will notice. In the dub, Kikyo and Shippo are spelled as I have them spelled. Now I'm not saying that I'm right and your wrong, that's not true. I'm just used to spelling their names that way and it isn't too big of a matter so I'm not going to try and break my habit. Hope you don't mind. BTW, if you noticed in this chapter, I went by the subs version of Kouga's name rather than Koga from dub. I like the sub version. Also what was the final thing you typed. I don't speak Japanese so all I could make out was 'thank you very much.'

Well that's about it. The next chapter is going to be a small short one but don't worry chapter's should be getting a little bit longer.


	3. Chapter 2 Resting Up

Okay I know I didn't update right away. I apologize for that. To make up for it you will notice that I'm updating two chapters. The other reason I'm doing this is because this chapter is way too short. I really want to thank you people for reviewing. Your great though unfortunately no body gave me a name for the new attack so the one in here now is tentative.

Over the next 2 weeks life is going to be hectic. So if I don't update, I'm sorry. Next week is the last week of classes for me and then the next week are finals. As I said I'm currently writing, Chapter 6 but all of the other chapters are in Word format so when I post the chapters I have to convert it using Frontpage. Well I think I've said enough on with the story

**_Quick note: _**_Italics_ means thoughts even if its in "quotations."

Disclaimer: I'm starting to feel like Shinji from Eva but instead of "I mustn't run away, I must run away" its become "I don't own Inuyasha, I don't own Inuyasha."

**A Wish From the Heart**

Chapter 2: Resting Up

"Since it's a new attack I guess you get to name it. What are you going to call it?" Kagome asked Inuyasha.

"I think I'll name it Death Blow," Inuyasha said push his chest out with pride.

"That's a stupid name," Kagome said totally disagreeing with the hanyou.

"Well sorry I'm not that creative and I really don't care. As long as I do that attack I don't care if I'll call the attack Dirt," Inuyasha yelled back at her. "Besides, you think you can do better?"

Kagome fumbled with it for a bit. "Well, I think everyone should rest up. It was a long battle and we have a while until we get back to Kaede's village," Miroku said saving everyone from the future argument. Everyone agreed. While their rest was helpful, they wanted to get as far away from Naraku's old lair as possible. Together the group made preparations to leave with the exception of a certain wolf demon.

Kouga approached and grasped her hands in his. "I'm sorry but I must leave you, Kagome," Kouga said. He didn't even see that it was taking both Sango and Miroku to hold Inuyasha back. "I must go check on my pack. With Kagura still out there, we must still be on our guard."

"Good luck, Kouga. And thank you for your help," Kagome said. Kouga bowed and took off. Without the jewels shards in his legs there wasn't the usual tornado but he still left with a blur.

"I think I'm going to go too," Myouga said as he jumped off of Inuyasha's shoulder. Inuyasha quickly reached out and grabbed him before he could get far.

"You're not going just yet. I want to have a talk with you," Inuyasha commanded not giving the flee a choice in the matter. Inuyasha turned away from the group and headed off in the woods.

"I wonder what that was about." Sango said but everyone was as stumped as she was.

"Inuyasha's like an open book but its one that continually changes languages that you can't understand what's going on. Every now and then it changes to your language but not too often," Kagome said.

"Well since it seems like we aren't leaving right now as we planned how about we get something to eat?" Miroku asked.

"That's a good idea. It's a good ways back and we may not find any good food along the way," Sango reply.

The good thing is that Inuyasha will probably come back when he smells food. He knows that we won't save any for him," Kagome said with a grin.

"I'll go gather some firewood," Sango said.

"I'll come with you, Lady Sango," Miroku spoke up.

Sango turned and glared at him. It looked as if she would scream no to him but she spoke with only a slight bit of restraint in her voice, "Fine but only because I don't want to leave you here with Kagome."

"Oh come now, if I tried to do anything to Kagome you know Inuyasha would get really jealous and come after me," Miroku said while Kagome showed small signs of blushing.

"Then maybe I should leave you here. I think I'd look forward to Inuyasha beating the crap out of you. You just might learn a lesson," Sango said.

"You never know what could be out there waiting to attack you, especially with us still being close to Naraku's castle."

"You talk as if I can't protect myself," Sango said almost angrily. "Listen I don't care what you do, I'm not waiting any longer. I'm going to find wood." With that Sango walked off in search of food with Miroku not far behind.

"_Why doesn't Sango just admit that she likes him?_" Kagome thought to herself. "_Probably for the same reason I don't tell Inuyasha that I like him, because she's afraid of getting rejected._"

"So what are we going to eat Kagome?" Shippo asked.

"Well I figured I'd make some ramen for everyone. That way Inuyasha won't complain." Kagome smiled. At that moment Shippo's stomach growled, Kagome looked at him and smiled, "Well its going to be a bit before I make the food but if you want there's a chocolate bar in the top of my bag."

"Yay!" Shippo yelled as he quickly hopped over to Kagome's bag and got out the chocolate and started eating it.

Kagome just smiled at the young demon. She wasn't sure what was going to happen now that the jewel had been reformed. She didn't want to leave behind all the people that she had come to know and love. She quickly pushed aside any worrying thoughts promising to think about those another time.

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Hey I said the chapter was short what do you expect. Thanks again to those of you who read my story and to: Rushy, Wolfite, Ryguy, and BabyAzn for reviewing my story. I hope you guys enjoy it.


	4. Chapter 3 I Want the Jewel

Well nothing new to say really. Since I'm updating this chapter with the other one same notes apply for both.

**Small Note:** As you will notice, Myouga is not in this chapter, though its not mentioned. He took off right after talking with IY. Just thought I'd tell you that.

Disclaimer: I don't know Inuyasha. Now leave me alone. If I stole him, I wouldn't be telling you in the first place.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 3: I Want the Jewel

It was shortly before dawn when the group had gotten up and was ready to leave. Kagome and Sango had gotten a bath early while everyone was still asleep. Unfortunately for them, Miroku happened to wake up before they finished and sought them out. He was rewarded with a rock to the head since Sango had left Hiraikotsu behind at camp. When Kagome got back to camp she decided to ask something that had been on her mind, "Hey Inuyasha, why did you let us sleep in? You usually wake us up at the crack of dawn."

Inuyasha, who was still laid back in his tree, huffed at the question, "So you wanted to be woken up early?"

"No, it just not like you," Kagome said.

"Well usually we were hunting jewel shards. Are there any more jewel shards?" Inuyasha asked knowing the answer.

"No. At least I don't think so," Kagome said as she pulled out the jewel they hard gotten from Naraku and the shards they had. Everyone watched as Kagome carefully placed the jewel shards into the jewel. The jewel glowed anew as it was whole once again. Kagome held it up for everyone to see, "Nope, the jewel is complete."

"I guess the question is what do we do with it now?" Sango asked. There was silence all around for a little bit. They hadn't really thought what they would do with it once it had been completed.

The silence was cut down by a single voice, "I want it." Everyone looked at Inuyasha after he spoke.

"You still want to become full demon after all that's happened and what you know?" Miroku asked as he thought back on the previous conversations he had with the hanyou on the subject. He wasn't sure if Inuyasha didn't care that nothing good ever came from it or if he had something else in mind.

"Hey don't forget, you all know why I was on this quest. I want the jewel." Inuyasha said.

Kagome looked at Inuyasha. She could tell he wasn't going to give up on this, but what caught her eye was something in his. There seemed to be something there that she couldn't tell what it was. Before she could look harder, Inuyasha diverted his face away from her.

Inuyasha started to think that she was going to reject giving him the jewel. "_If she doesn't give me the jewel, I can always just take it from her_," Inuyasha thought to himself. He hoped though that she would give him it. He didn't really like to force anybody especially Kagome but he had to do this.

"Here Inuyasha," Kagome said as she held out the jewel to him. "You did a lot of the fighting along the way, so I guess you should get what you came for as well as the rest of us did."

Inuyasha was surprised that she actually let him have it. For a second he wasn't sure if he should be then decided that this was his one chance. He quickly took the Shikon no Tama from her.

"Shouldn't we be worried that if Inuyasha wishes to be fully demon, he might go crazy and try to kill all of us?" Shippo asked. When Inuyasha grabbed the Shikon Jewel, Shippo decided to get some distance between him and Inuyasha just in case. He took off to the nearest forest. Miroku pretended to chase after him but in actuality Miroku was running for cover too.

Inuyasha closed his fingers over the Shikon Jewel and closed his eyes. He seemed to think hard for a bit and the jewel seemed to be glowing. After a second, he opened his eyes and the glowing had stopped. Inuyasha sighed and turned to Kagome. He handed her the jewel, "Here you take this, I'm going after the kid and perv before they get too far." With that Inuyasha leapt after Shippo and Miroku.

Kagome just seemed to watch him in confusing as he left. "Do you think he made a wish?" Sango asked Kagome.

"I don't know. I figured that when the jewel glowed it was granting his wish. Maybe it couldn't or wouldn't grant his wish?" Kagome asked part question, part guess. The jewel seemed to look the same as before. It hadn't disappeared. The color hadn't faded as they expected to happen when a wish was made. Maybe Inuyasha didn't make a wish. There was a bit of silence between them before Kagome said, "So why did you stay? Why didn't you run off with Miroku and Shippo?"

"You guys were always there for me no matter what I did or Kohaku. You continued to help me try to save him," Sango said. "I told Miroku once that even if Inuyasha decided to become a full demon. I'd stick beside him and the rest of you. What about you?"

"Well for one, I told Inuyasha I'd follow him no matter what he decided. Not to mention, all I have to do is say 'sit'…" Suddenly Kagome and Sango heard a crash into the ground followed by some loud cursing. Kagome just turned to Sango with a smile, "well you get the picture."

It wasn't long before Inuyasha came back with Miroku and Shippo in tow yelling at Kagome, "Why the hell did you sit me?"

"It was an accident. I didn't mean to," Kagome said. She quickly turned the tables on him though as she changed subjects. "So what's up with the Shikon Jewel? Didn't it grant your wish?"

Inuyasha just huffed in anger and replied with a simple, "Feh!" With that he turned around and started walking away, "Let's get moving back to Kaede's. We were supposed to leave yesterday so I don't want to hear any complaining or you needing a break."

Sango and Kagome looked at each other and both whispered, "He didn't get his wish." No one decided to push the issue any more, everyone turned and followed Inuyasha.

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**PLEASE REVIEW**


	5. Chapter 4 A New Journey

  
Well its against my better judgment but I'd decided to update within 1 day. I was surprised by how many reviews I got. 17 total for only 1 update. That was fantastic. My Gundam story didn't get 17 reviews for the entire story. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Now for some review responses:

_ Takerus Lost Angel _- I feel so special. You review was a great inspiration thank you very much.

_ Sakura Mori _- A cookie? really? I love cookies. I like chocolate chip and those special Christmas ones.

_ Sakume Nohara & Takerus Lost Angel_ - See the After Note at the end of chapter.

_Samantha (and just about everyone else)_ - As you will see, you won't find out what IY wished for is this chapter. That will become coming later on down the road. I'm just gonna let you think about it for now.

Now on with the story. I own IY. All characters of mine  
Mysterious voice: Delusion, another sign of hunger. Hungry, grab a snickers. (sorry I just saw that commerical and I had to put that in here. Even though I don't like snickers. I prefer Milky Way or 3 Muskteers.

**A Wish From the Heart  
**

**Chapter 4: A New Journey**

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Kaede was tending to her herb garden as she saw Inuyasha and the rest of the group return. Surprisingly she didn't hear any arguing going on. Once they were in range she called out to them, "What has ye in such a good mood that ye aren't fighting?" Without saying anything, Kagome held up the now completed Shikon no Tama. "So ye've finally done it."

"Yeah, took us two years," Inuyasha said roughly.

"So what will ye do now that the jewel is completed?" Kaede asked. Everyone's face seemed to drop at this. They hadn't thought what to do.

"_Now that the jewel is complete, there's no more use for me_," Kagome thought to herself. "_Inuyasha probably wants me gone since I'm just a shard-detector._"

"_There's really nothing for me here_," Sango thought. "_Kagome will probably go home. I might be able to go back home and rebuild my village. One day it will be a village of great demon hunters again. I wonder where Miroku is going to go._"

"_I didn't think about that before. I more assumed that I would die before we got a chance to defeat Naraku. I was just a wondering monk before I met Inuyasha and Kagome. I'd like to stick with Sango but she's probably not going to stick around and won't want me around_."

Shippo was sad. "_I lost my parents before to the Thunder Brothers. Now Kagome's like a mom to me, I don't want her to leave. And though I don't want to admit it, Inuyasha is somewhat like a father. I don't want to lose my new parents._"

Inuyasha like Kaede had been watching everyone's expression. His was the only one that didn't look grim. He didn't have to do anything thinking but instead spoke out, "We have one other journey yet." Everyone looked up at him with a bit of surprise and joy.

"Really? And where might ye be going?" Kaede asked.

"Yeah, where are we going?" Kagome asked.

"If you don't want to go, wench, then you don't have to go," Inuyasha said not facing her.

"You mean we actually have a choice?" Miroku asked.

"No you don't. Kagome is the only one that has a choice." Inuyasha said.

"Do you want me to come?" Kagome asked hoping that he would say 'yes.'

"That's your decision not mine," Inuyasha said.

Kagome took time to think. After a few minutes she spoke up, "Well I haven't been home in a while. I'd like to visit my time. Not to mention I've missed a lot of school."

"How long would you be gone?" Inuyasha asked impatiently.

"Well if I remember correctly, this upcoming school week is finals and then I'm done school for the year. I'll have the entire summer off." Kagome said. She then looked at the ground afraid that Inuyasha wouldn't like the amount of time. She then said in a lower tone of voice, "I would need about a week."

Inuyasha was about to yell at her that it was too much time but them he remember something, "Fine, we'll wait one week but not a day longer!" Before anyone could ask him anything else he took off towards his forest.

"He's acting weird." Shippo said.

"I agree but I'm not sure it would be wise to try and figure out what he's up to," Miroku said. "He's definitely not going to tell us."

"Yeah I know. Well I have to get going and study for finals. The sooner I go hopefully the sooner I'll get back," Kagome said as waved and walked towards the Bone Eater's Well.  


~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&

Okay a few things. Two people asked about me emailing them. I will put together a mailing list. Just leave your email address when you review or you can email me directly. the_spider2001@hotmail.com. I can't guarantee that I will email you exactly the time I update and everything but I will try my best. 

As for short chapters, I've looked ahead and the next chapter will be slightly short too but a little longer than this chapter. I know where the bigger chapters will come in but that is a bit later on about 3-4 chapters down the road. Also I know I didn't mention Kikyo much in this story. You might be wondering is she dead or alive/walking dead? Well that will be answered next chapter. See you then.

Next chapter: Chapter 5: The Wait


	6. Chapter 5 The Wait

Well here is the next chapter of my story. As I'm sure you can see RyGuy, The Wait is the title of the chapter not having to wait for it. lol. This chapter is another short one.

I'm not sure when I'll be updating again. I plan to update around Saturday but I can't guarantee anything for a few reasons:  
1. Chapter 6 isn't totally written (all previous chapters were previously written)**  
** 2. My 3rd college semester is coming to a close and I have to have a certain GPA to get into my major otherwise I'm screwed. And I have quite a few papers due and next week is finals. So if I find the time to write I will but no guarantees.**  
** 3. Life likes to throw me curves so something always likes to get in my way.

Now for review responses:

_** Rachel509**_ - I will finish this fic. I don't totally know every aspect of the ending but I know the general idea. As of matter of fact, driving to school today I thought of something new to throw in (but that's in later chapters). As for Kohaku, I know how you feel. I don't like seeing good characters die but I had to make a few sacrifices in writing this. Just keep reading.

_** Sakume Nohara**_ - Yes, you'll find out about Kikyo in this chapter but it's not going to be action. I don't go into detail about it but I might later. Who knows?

_** Takerus Lost Angel **_- If you noticed the note above my quick updating is going to slow down but will still be quicker than my other updates (which were sometimes a month (once it was 7 months *ouch*)) S-H-O-U-T (you told me give you a shout)

_** Black Dice**_ - Thank you for the Milky Way. *jumps for joy* I haven't seen Excel Saga but I've heard about it. If you ever go too crazy just take some Ritalin.

_** AND TO EVERYONE **_- You'll have to wait about 4-5 more chapters for the wish though in about 2-3 chapters you might be able to form an idea as to what it is. 

_** Disclaimer**_ - who would have a name like disclaimer. I don't know but I'm telling him that I don't own IY (I hope everyone understands the joke).

italics- are thoughts  
***** is scene change

**  
**

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 5: The Wait

Sango slowly stirred the stew that she was making for dinner. It had been four days since Kagome had left. They hadn't heard much from Inuyasha. He only showed up when he was hungry and sometimes he didn't even show up for that.

"Is the stew ready?" Miroku asked his companion.

"Not yet. Give it a few more minutes," she said and then turned to Miroku and talked more seriously. "Houshi-sama, I'm starting to get worried about Inuyasha?"

"You shouldn't worry. He always gets like this when Kagome's gone, you know that," Miroku replied.

"I'm not talking about that. Ever since we defeated Naraku and he took the jewel, he's been different. He didn't argue with Kagome very much on our return to the village, he didn't seem too bothered when Kagome said she'd be gone a week, and he isn't forcing Kagome to go on this new journey. This is just very unlike Inuyasha"

"I've noticed that myself, but Inuyasha always was a mystery to figure out so I didn't even try to rationalize he current behavior. I don't know where this journey is going to lead us but I trust Inuyasha so I'm not too worried."

"I guess you're right," Sango said and relaxed. Miroku noticed this and took advantage right away. *SLAP* "Damn pervert. Now you can wait until everyone else is done eating until you eat," Sango said still fuming. "Shippo," she called knowing that the kit was outside the hut with Kaede. Barely a second after calling Shippo jumped in the hut looking for food.

"Lady Sango, I'm very hungry and Inuyasha might eat all the food before I get a chance," Miroku pleaded.

"Well that will be good punishment for you," Sango said firmly.

*****

At that moment, Inuyasha was still up in one of his favorite trees in his forest. He is thinking over whether he was right in planning this journey. It would definitely change a lot of things. Hopefully no one would mind too much. He was missed Kagome. She would be gone for a week. It was the longest they had been separated in their entire journey. Even when he had managed to force her back to her time, she had only been gone 3 or 4 days. It took a lot of self control to say that he'd wait a week but that would help him and though he wouldn't admit it, he wanted Kagome to come with them. After Kikyo had been killed by Naraku for the second time, he grieved for her but he was also relieved. He wouldn't have to go to hell with her. He never really wanted to in the first place but he owed her. Now he wouldn't have to worry about that, he could spend his time with Kagome, if only she shared his feelings. The only reason he didn't admit his feelings to her was because he was afraid he'd be hurt if she didn't feel the same way. 

He quickly shook his head trying to get the depressing thoughts out of his head. He looked out at the sun. It was setting over the horizon. Kagome had always liked to watch the sun set. She always remarked that it was beautiful and he would just pretend not to care but in fact he had to admit that it was beautiful if you took the time to watch it. He wondered if she was watching the sun set right now.

*****

As of matter of fact, Kagome had just taken a break from doing her homework to watch the sun set. She had been wondering the same thing about Inuyasha though she highly doubted it since he didn't seem to care. She had so much work to catch up on. Finals were only half done and she wasn't too sure on how well she was doing at this point. She hoped that she wouldn't fail and have to repeat this year. She had tried studying but her thoughts would always come back to a certain silver-haired hanyou. Now that the jewel was complete, she had no purpose there. She wouldn't mind stopping by now and then to see her friends but they probably wouldn't stay there in Kaede's village. She would've admitted her feeling about Inuyasha long ago but it seemed to be unrequited love (for those of you who don't know: that means a one-sided love). Even though Kikyo was dead, Inuyasha probably still loved her. If she did leave the feudal age for good, she would admit her feelings to Inuyasha before then so that she didn't have anything to regret. Maybe after this new journey she'd tell him. She was still wondering where this journey's destination was but she told Inuyasha she'd follow him and she would. 

Well the sun had gone down over the horizon almost ten minutes ago, it was time she got back to work. Before she walked away from the window, she looked around. She couldn't help but feel she was being watched. She had this feeling ever since she got back. Was Inuyasha following her or was it something else? She didn't know and she had too much work to worry about it. If Inuyasha was watching her, then let him. She still had 3 days until she was to return to the feudal era as she promised and to keep that promise she had to finish her work. Though Kagome tried to study, within ten minutes she was asleep at her desk.

_  
**~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&**_

Well that's it for this chapter. I hope you don't go too crazy about it being short. I'm not sure if you'd consider this fluff but it comes close. Some good fluff is coming on down the line. I'm also going to start something new here. I saw some else do it before and I'm going to try it. I'm going to recommend other stories to read (mostly IY) that I have read and liked. First up:

Transcending a Dynasty by JadeWing - ; - futuristic AU. Really good with LONG chapters. I really loved this story and just the other day it was completed. Good luck on bring it out as a regular novel 

Also I know I forgot to thank people for reviewing for the 4th chapter so here's for both chapter 4&5 (no repeats): Rachel509, Sakume Nohara, Ryngrl5, Takerus Lost Angel, Silent Dark, ssp51201, keri, Ryguy, Burnsybabe, Black Dice, lilemmy, Kara Noboru, Sakura Mori, tinsas, hikariko, General Cartwright, Samantha-1434, Sunnygurl357, seikkyokuka, Angel452, and b00kperson. Thanks all of you.

**Next Chapter: Chapter 6: Beginning the Next Journey**


	7. Chapter 6 Beginning the Next Journey

Welcome one and all to my great fanfic. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. But first review responses:

_**Takerus Lost Angel**_ - ohh, I flying penguin? Now all we need is some rope, a box/cage, and a monkey and we have a Physics problem. Sounds crazy I know but if you'd see my Physics book and teacher you'd understand. Me and fellow classmates like to make fun of both.

_**Silent Dark**_ - It is freaky isn't it but unfortunately you won't find out until way later on. You won't find out until after this journey.

_**Sunnygurl**_ - I'd love to tell you what IY wished for but that would ruin the surprise and suspense. Just hold out for a few more chapters.

_**Lilemmy**_ - The journey starts here so don't worry as for the wish look up one review. Patience really was never one of my virtues either. It comes and goes and I'm usually without more than I am with it. As for finals, I dread them but I only have 2 but there going to be tough.

_**Sakume Nohara**_ - Why is IY acting strange? You'll have to wait on that. IY himself will probably explain that but that's about 1 chapter after he reveals what he wished for. I checked out your profile and I find your name's origin interesting.

Disclaimer: I have a paper on the wall that says I own Inuyasha, it hangs right next to my Certifiably Insane paper. Insanity runs in my family. ha ha ha ha ha.

****

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 6: Beginning the Next Journey  


Kagome quickly ran from her house. If she didn't hurry, her friends would leave her. As Kagome thought about it though Sango and Miroku would make Inuyasha wait for her even though deep down she knew that Inuyasha wouldn't leave without her. After finishing packing her yellow backpack she turned to her mom, "I'll see you when I get back."

"How long will you be gone, dear?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

"I don't know. Inuyasha said we had one final journey but he didn't say where or how long it was going to take," Kagome replied.

"Okay, as long as you're with Inuyasha I don't mind and since you have off of school for the summer you don't have to worry about rushing back. Have a nice trip," Kagome's mother wish her.

"See you when I get back." With that Kagome turned and ran out of the house and headed towards the well house. As she ran there, she couldn't help but feel as if she was being watched. If it had been Inuyasha, he would have come out by now and just helped to drag her back to the Feudal Era. "_I'm probably just being paranoid. Now that Naraku is gone and the jewel is whole, there's nothing to worry about_," Kagome thought as she walked into the well house and quickly jumped down the old well.

*****

After crawling out of the well, Kagome took a break and sat on the well's edge while admiring the beauty of the surrounding forest. "_Ironic that this is called Inuyasha's forest and both it and Inuyasha are equally beautiful_," Kagome thought without thinking. "_Did I just think that Inuyasha is beautiful?!? Well he is kind of cute but he doesn't like me. Maybe after this journey, I'll tell him how I feel about him_." 

It was about then when Kagome heard a voice from the woods. "It's about time you get here. I was going to leave without you." Inuyasha called as he jumped from a tree and landed right next to the well. A small blush ran through Kagome's cheeks as she remembered what she had just been thinking about. "If you would have gotten here earlier we could have left by now."

Kagome glared at Inuyasha, "I said I needed one week and I'd be back and I kept my word. If you were in such a hurry, then why didn't you leave without me like you said you would."

"I said I'd wait a week and I don't lie. Besides I wanted to wait for you because you always have that good ramen. You did bring some, didn't you?" Inuyasha asked.

"No, I didn't," Kagome said sarcastically but unfortunately Inuyasha did understand that.

"Why not? Do you hate me that much? Or is it that I hate all the ramen in your world?" Inuyasha continued to go on and on with questions.

Kagome just let out a sigh and wasn't even paying attention to him anymore. "Sit." With that Inuyasha went crashing to the ground but at least now he had shut up. Kagome bent down and talked to the still confused hanyou. "Inuyasha listen, I have ramen with me. I was being sarcastic before so please calm down already. And trust me, my world isn't going to run out of ramen any time soon." With that Kagome got up and started walked towards the village.

Inuyasha peeled himself out of the ground and followed Kagome, "Well you didn't have to sit me, wench."

"I wouldn't have had to if you wouldn't have been asking so many ridiculous questions."

"I wouldn't have asked the questions if you hadn't lied about the ramen."

"I didn't lie about the ramen I was being sarcastic and I thought you were smart enough to realize that."

"Are you calling me stupid?" And so the argument continued.

*****

Meanwhile, Sango and Miroku waited in the village for Kagome and Inuyasha's return. Since Kagome was coming back today, they knew that Inuyasha wouldn't return until Kagome had. As a matter of fact, they were talking about their half demon friend, "I really think we need to confront Inuyasha about this. We need to find out what is making him act so differently. He hasn't been himself lately." Sango said.

"I know. I'm starting to worry about him, myself. Though he might now want to talk about it, in the long run I think it would be better for Inuyasha to talk about what's bothering him." Before they could speak anymore, they heard voices yelling at one another and they were coming from the woods. The huntress and monk watched as Kagome and Inuyasha emerged arguing with one another. Miroku just turned to Sango and said, "then again maybe it was something small and he's already over it."

Sango was totally sure until she heard Kagome say 'sit,' and Inuyasha could be heard yelled some curses. "I think you might be right."

*****

Kagome really loved the scenery around her. They had been traveling for four days so far and still Inuyasha hadn't told them where they were going. Kagome didn't have any idea. She was pretty sure that in their travels for the Shikon shards they hadn't come this way at all. Kagome looked at her watch and saw that it was 5 o'clock. She hoped that if she asked Inuyasha to stop that he wouldn't be mad. In these past few days he confused her. Sometimes he wouldn't mind stopping while others he would complain. Well she might as well try, "hey, Inuyasha can we stop for a bit? It's about time to eat."

Inuyasha looked around and there didn't seem to be any danger, "okay, you go ahead and set up a fire while I catch something to eat." With that Inuyasha ran off in search of food. Once he was far enough away from the group, Inuyasha quickly hit his own cheek. Inuyasha caught an annoying flea as he fell off his face, "Do you have to do that every time you show up?"

"Well as Kagome was saying it is meal time," Myouga replied.

"Keh," came Inuyasha's reply, "Did you do what I asked you to?"

"Yes, I did Lord Inuyasha."

There was a small pause. "And?!?" Inuyasha asked impatiently.

"Everything is going as you planned. Might I asked how much longer you think your journey is going to take you?"

"I'd say we have about 4 or 5 more days until we get there." Inuyasha replied.

"Are you sure about this, Lord Inuyasha? Shouldn't you at least tell the others about this?" Myouga asked.

"If I wanted to tell them, I would have and you're not going to say a word either. They'll find out everything when we get there. Now if you don't mind, I have to find dinner. You can head back to camp and remember we haven't talked." With that Inuyasha bounded off into the forest after some prey. 

"I hope he knows what he's doing," Myouga said as he hoped back to camp where he'd act like he just arrived.

  
**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well everyone wanted a longer chapter and here it is. This still isn't the length for one of my regular chapters. My usually length is anywhere from 7-14 pages per chapter. This story is just different. I don't have much new to say but here's my next IY fanfic referral:

Time for a Change by SvF-BD02-Wedge ; This is probably one of the first IY stories I started reading here at ff.net and is really good.

Once again I want to thank those people who reviewed my story: Ryngrl5, Sakume Nohara, lilemmy, Sunnygurl357, Silent Dark, Takerus Lost Angel, and Burnsybabe. Thank you very much

Well that's about it. See you next time for:

**Chapter 7: The Right to Pass**

I should tell you that the next few chapters will have cliff hangers. I know you might hate me for it but I can't resist the temptation to put them in. :)


	8. Chapter 7 The Right to Pass

Welcome once and again to my great story. For all of you people on the edge about the wish. This chapter doesn't totally take away that edge but gives you a better standing. But to make up for my generosity, this chapter is ending in a cliffhanger. HA HA HA HA HA. Don't you just hate them? I do too but I love to put them in my story. Talk about ironic. Well before I start, review responses:

**_ Simply a Lady_ - **I'm glad that my story is helping yours. Good luck on yours.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Well I usually don't do cliffhangers but I hope you like/hate this one.

**_lilemmy_** - well by the end of this chapter you should know what the title means. As for finals, I spent my time writing this rather than studying for a Calculus final but I think I'll be okay. I just have to worry about Physics which is Wednesday.

**_Evil Pixi Sport Spork Goddess_** - If your driving yourself mad, then hit the brakes. Don't let your condition get worse otherwise you'll get like me.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - It wasn't until 12th grade that I had Physics in high school but I have to take it in college. That's what I get for trying to be a computer engineer. I'm not even sure if I'll make it. By the end of this week, I'll know. Then again I'm sure you don't care. I just have a habit of babbling on. 

**Disclaimer:** Well the physiatrist tell me that to prove I'm sane all I have to do is read this card. "I don't own Inuyasha." It's a lie. It's a lie. *the men in white coats are back* 

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 7: The Right to Pass

"Myouga, are you sure you don't have any idea where Inuyasha is leading us?" Kagome asked. Myouga had joined them about 3 days ago and he said he didn't know then but she was hoping that he would recognize the surrounding area and have some sort of idea.

"I'm sorry but I still don't have any idea," Myouga replied. He didn't like lying to Kagome but he knew he would be in trouble with Inuyasha if he said anything.

Kagome couldn't take anymore of this. "Inuyasha stop," she yelled up to him.

Inuyasha turned around, "We just took a break an hour ago. Don't tell me you need another already?" Inuyasha asked getting impatient.

"I'm fine but I want to know where we are going already. We left Kaede's village about a week ago and you still haven't said anything about where we are going. I'm not going any more until you tell us."

"I agree, Inuyasha," Sango said.

"I don't have to tell you," Inuyasha said getting angry. "We only have a few more days yet." Inuyasha turned his head from the group.

"I don't care I want to know where we're going?" Kagome said getting angry. She noticed Inuyasha wasn't even listening to her, "Are you even listening?"

"Shut up." Inuyasha told everyone. Kagome was about to sit him when she noticed that he was sniffing around and his ears seemed to be searching for something. He then stiffened up and yelled, "Come out! I know you're there!"

"So you finally realized it!" a voice yelled out. Everyone looked forward to where the voice was coming from. Whoever it was, stood far ahead of them. They could barely make him out. He looked to be about 150 yards a head of them. They started to make their way towards him. "Don't come any closer! You're already trespassing and I'm going to have to ask you to leave!"

"No way! I've come too far for you to stop me," Inuyasha yelled.

"You have no idea who you are talking to boy!" the man replied.

"I know exactly who I'm talking to and I'm gonna keep going even if I have to go through you!" Inuyasha said.

"Fine by me. We shall fight but don't expect me to go easy on you," the man said.

"I don't want it any other way," Inuyasha said as he started to make his way towards his mysterious opponent. Sango pulled her boomerang from her back and started to follow him until Inuyasha turned around, "don't interfere. This is my fight. No matter what happens don't help out."

"Are you sure about this, Inuyasha?" Sango asked. "I'm not sure if you're going to be able to do this on your own."

"I can do this." Inuyasha said to them and then after he said under his breath, "I have to." Everyone could only watch as Inuyasha walked forward to an uncertain battle. Once in range, Inuyasha wasted no time in charging his opponent. The man easily side-stepped Inuyasha's claws and quickly delivered a kick to his midsection. Inuyasha was thrown back five feet but landed softly and acted as if he barely felt the kick. Inuyasha charged once again, "Sankon Tessou (Iron Reaver Soul Stealer, for those watching dubs). Once again the man dodged the attack but did cut a slight cut on the cheek.

The man raised a hand to his cheek and wiped away the blood. After doing that the cut instantly healed. "You actually managed to hit me, I'll give you that but if that's all you got you might as well go now."

"Trust me, I was just warming up. I think its time to get serious," Inuyasha said as he drew Tetsusaiga.

"This should be interesting," the man said as he drew his own sword.

"Do you think Inuyasha can do this?" Kagome asked Miroku as the watched the battle.

"I don't know. We don't know who this guy is and he hasn't even made any sort of offensive attack yet so we don't know how powerful he is."

"But Inuyasha seems to know this guy," Kagome said as she thought to herself. She then looked to her shoulder, "Myouga, do you know who this guy is?"

"Ahh… why no I don't," he said in a very unconvincing way. "I have to be going." He quickly jumped away before anyone could grab him. Everyone decided to turn their attention back to the battle.

"Let's just see how much you've improved," the man said. He swung his sword and it seemed to let off a wave of energy in Inuyasha's direction.

"Kaze no Kizu!" Inuyasha yelled as he let his attack meet with his opponent's. When the two attacks collided there was a huge explosion. Everyone watched to see which attack would be stronger and prevail but to their amazement it was neither. The two attacks had cancelled each other out.

"You have improved," the man said.

"Yeah, I have," Inuyasha said from behind his opponent. The man quickly realized his mistake. He had assumed Inuyasha was where he stood before but because of the smoke from the explosion he hadn't been sure. "Kaze no Kizu!" The man turned around just in time to see the attack coming.

"He's done for sure," Shippo said.

Rather than try and dodge again, the man simply waited for the attack. Just a second before the attack hit him, he brought his sword straight down and managed to split the attack.

"I don't believe it. He managed to defeat the Kaze no Kizu with one sword swing," Sango said.

"I think Inuyasha is going to have a hard time," Miroku said.

Inuyasha, though, showed a hint of surprise but not much. "I expected as much. I just didn't think you'd wait that long to do that."

"As I said if that's all you got you might as well turn around," the man said. 

"Big words for someone who's barely made an aggressive move this entire battle," Inuyasha said back.

"I warned you. Now you will find out what you're truly up against," with that the man swung his sword and sent out and even bigger wave of energy than before and it moved even faster. Inuyasha didn't have time to react as the wave hit him sending him into a nearby cliff. Inuyasha pushed himself out of the cliff. It was obvious that the attack at done some damage to him but not a great amount. Inuyasha looked up at his opponent just in time to see another wave coming at him.

"INUYASHA!" Kagome yelled as she watched him get smashed into the cliff again. Because of being so far away she couldn't tell how bad Inuyasha was hurt. Kagome would have run up to him by now if Sango hadn't been holding her back for her own safety.

Inuyasha could hear Kagome clearly. She was worried about him even though he was still fine. He only suffered from some minor cuts all around his body. "_I've got to end this. I don't have time to waste. Plus I know they're going to worry about me if I keep getting hit like this._" Inuyasha thought to himself. "_Let's see if the old man likes this_." With that Inuyasha jumped out of his hole in the cliff clutching Tetsusaiga. As he expected, another wave was coming at him. Inuyasha held Tetsusaiga as air seemed to wrap around it, "Bakuryuuha!"

Inuyasha's opponent looked surprised and slightly scared as he saw the attack coming. "Shit, I never thought he be this serious." The man quickly raised his sword and filled it with his power. He then swung the sword releasing a lot of his energy. The energy met with many of the twisters and cancelled them out but one still existed as it hit the man. Luckily he survived the attack though he did take a bit of damage.

Inuyasha didn't make any more aggressive moves. In fact, he put Tetsusaiga away. Inuyasha slowly walked over to his opponent how was slowly standing up. "Was that good enough for you or do you want more?" Inuyasha asked haughtily.

"ARE YOU CRAZY? If I was any other person, I'd be dead right now." The man said getting angrier by the minute.

"Well duh, that's the point to the attack. It's meant to kill the opponent but I figured you'd make it out alive," Inuyasha said with a smirk. Inuyasha waved a hand to his friends telling them they could approach.

"You figured?!? You weren't even sure?" All the while Inuyasha kept his smirk plastered to his face. "I didn't think you'd go all out. If I would have known you'd do that then I would have transformed into my demon form. Then what would you have done?"

"Well then I would have used my newest and most powerful attack," Inuyasha said as he watched the man's face change to surprise. "So you see, I've been holding back as well." About this time the rest of the group arrived and finally saw the man that Inuyasha had been facing. He stood just a little higher than Inuyasha. Even though he was injured before, the injures were already healing quite well. He had short grayish or silver hair. They couldn't tell. Though he had been defeated the man seemed to carry a high sense of honor. 

"You have done quite well," the man said calmly. "You will have to tell me of this new attack later on. You have proven yourself worthy to enter this land." He then turned to the rest of the group. "And these must be your friends I have heard about." The man noticed a hand from Miroku moving towards Sango. He motioned to Sango and she noticed. Sango glared at Miroku as he quickly moved the hand away. "Miroku, the perverse monk, Sango, the demon exterminator, Shippo, the kitsune." The man said as he indicated each. He then looked to Kagome, "oh yes, Kagome, the miko from the future. It's nice to meet all of you. I've heard all about you." Everyone was surprised that he knew each and every one of them but was even more surprised that he knew Kagome was from the future.

"Might I ask how you know all about us?" Kagome asked uncertainly.

"Myouga was kind enough to fill me in."

"Myouga lied to us," Kagome said getting angry at the flea that had run off. "I don't mean to seem rude but who are you? You seem to know all of us but we don't know you."

"Inuyasha, why don't you introduce me," the man said to Inuyasha.

"_Ohh boy, here it goes. I just hope they take it well_," Inuyasha thought to himself before turning to his friends and saying, "Everyone I'd like you to meet my father, Inutaisho."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&  
_**

HA HA HA. The first of many cliffhangers. But with the information now I have 2 obvious questions:  
1. What was IY's wish?  
2. Where are they going?  
3. Who was watching Kagome? (okay this is a 3rd question but its not obvious)

Alright now for some regular updates. I have decided on putting in an original character a little down the road. I won't tell you who it is but I'll tell you that it's a guy. Because of putting him in there will be even more action chapters. The next chapter or two might be short. Sorry about it but that's what I have to do. Hope you not mad at me. BTW, IY/Kag fluff is coming and once it starts it won't stop. Might pause but won't stop. Enjoy. Now for my next referral:

This referral is like my usual. I've been wanting to put this one in but I've been putting it off. This referral isn't for a story but instead an author:

Moonsilver ?userid=48044 I think she is one of the best author's I read from on all of ff.net. Her IY stories are awesome. My favorite is: The Gift. If you haven't read anything by her than you are definitely missing out.

Well now time for my wonderful reviewers. Thanks all of you. Inuyasha'sDreamGirl, Simply a Lady, Sakume Nohara, Coco, keri, Ryguy, lilemmy, Silent Dark, Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess, and Takerus Lost Angel.

Come back next time for:

**Chapter 8: We Must Hurry**


	9. Chapter 8 We Must Hurry

Okay before we start the story, we have many things to address:

**_Important _**- I didn't think I'd have to bring this up but it seems thanks to one reviewer I do. I'm not blaming this reviewer at all, as a matter of fact, I and everyone I told had a good laugh over this. In one of my reviews, a person made the remark of calling me a lady. Most people know where this is going. **I AM A GUY!!!!!!!** I never came out in any of my chapters and said that because I saw no point to just say 'ohh btw, I'm a guy.' If you would happen to check my profile, you'll see my actual first name is Robert. Okay now that is out of the way.

**_Inutaisho Issue_** - I knew this would surprise everyone but never did I imagine I'd get over 30 reviews for it. I'm so happy. Special congrats goes to explainatron (who was the first) and Fukashi who asked the question I knew would be asked. "You do know that Inutaisho is dead, right?" I knew this question would come and to be blunt, YES. I don't know how you could go through the series without not knowing it.

As to why he's in the story, you'll have to wait and see. But I'll throw some ideas at you: it could have been the wish, the grave could have been a decoy, has the group entered the land of the dead, or is there something else at work. Wait and see. HA HA HA HA HA.

Now for review responses and there's a lot of them:

**_moonsilver_** - you're actually reading my story. I feel so honored. It was my pleasure to refer you. I hope you enjoy what happens in the next few chapters.

**_badgerwolf_** - read the first note.

**_Silent Dark_** - You and only one other person I think actually answered my questions. For the answers, you'll have to wait but the answer to the second one is in this chapter. 

**_Shadow Tsunami_** - don't worry unless you review says 'I think your writing sucks' then it isn't a flame. I actually like your review. 

**_Fukashi_** - I was pretty sure that it was clear that Inuyasha's father's name was Inutaisho. There is actually one other spelling out there but I didn't like it so I didn't use it. As for English errors, I just finished Basic English in college and I only got a B. I have never been good at grammar so don't be too technical.

**_lilemmy_** - Inuyasha's mother? wait and see my friend, wait and see. Good luck on your finals, I'd love to take Japanese but they don't offer it at my branch campus. As for MacroEcon, you obviously didn't have the teacher I had. I was able to get an A in that class and never pay attention. Thank god I can memorize lists for tests. As for referrals, I usually don't take them off my Fav. Story/Author lists. They more often come from stories I remember reading or those I have bookmarked. I will continue to read fanfics but I will also write so don't worry. As for my finals/grades, I explain below.

**_ANNE (v) 79 _**- Congrats you are the only person to ask about Sess. Sess won't be a major character in this story but he does make appearances and is talked about (like in this chapter). As for who is the true "Lord of the Western Lands." You'll find out later.

**_Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess_** - that is one long name to type. :) As for your review, I think you got the facts backwards. Someone is watching Kagome. Kagome isn't watching anyone. The question is Who was watching her?

**_daddys little angel_** - you dying, well I have the cure another chapter. Not to mention your asking if Kagome will faint and you're the one that passes out.

_**Burnsybabe**_ - As you can see, I'm updating before Sunday, unfortunately you won't have your answers yet. I hope to update once more before Sunday but I will continue to update over Christmas break.

**Personal Note:** Right now at this point I'm really on edge because my grades. I would consider my grades this semester to be good but last semester they weren't so my GPA is really tentative. I need a 3.2 to get into Computer Engineering and so far I have only one grade that I don't know. That grade is Physics. If I get a B+, I will have the GPA needed but if I don't I won't have it. I'm writing this at quarter after 11 in the morning and I'll be meeting with my teacher at 12:30. I'll be begging him for the B+. I don't know what I'm going to do if I don't get it. So life is quite hectic right now. I wish everyone else good luck in school.

Now almost time for the story but first

Disclaimer: Probably a certain someone thought I was a girl because I'm trying to say that I own IY but I just think it would be cool to own IY. Now if we're going to talk about certain preferences, I'd have to go for Sango. *gets smacked on the head with boomerang* "What'd you do that for?"

Sango: Because you just as perverted as Miroku.

Me: I am not! I don't grope you like Miroku is about to 

Sango *smacks a perverted monk behind her*: now listen up readers, Spider/Robert doesn't own me, IY or anything by Rumiko Takahashi. Hell his parents even bought him the '87 Honda Accord he drives, which is happened to crack the windshield when taking the ice pick like an axe to it.

Me: Hey you weren't suppose to be telling them that. Well before she tells you anything else on with the story:

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 8: We Must Hurry

"_Ohh boy, here it goes. I just hope they take it well_," Inuyasha thought to himself before turning to his friends and saying, "Everyone I'd like you to meet my father, Inutaisho."

"WHAT?!?" everyone seemed to scream as Inuyasha covered his ears.

"But you told us he was dead?" Kagome asked. "I went with you to his grave, when you got Tetsusaiga."

"Yeah, I know. Listen, I explain it all in a few days," Inuyasha told them and stared them as to say 'don't push the matter any more.'

"I think I understand where we are going," Miroku said. "We're going to your home, aren't we? To the Western Lands?"

"You're smarter than you look," Inuyasha said sarcastically.

"This is going to be cool," Kagome said happily. She then turned to Inutaisho, "It's an honor to meet you, sir."

"No, I believe the honor is mine. While Myouga was only tell me somewhat, he told me you have managed to have a good impact on my son's life." Inutaisho said. Kagome stared at the ground as she felt herself blush. Inutaisho then turned to Inuyasha, "I see you have done well with Tetsusaiga. How did you finally get it?"

"Well in a way, I have Sesshomaru to thank for that. He came trying to find it but found that he couldn't have it. Unfortunately though when I first used it, it transformed in the middle of my swing and took off his left arm." Inuyasha said hiding the whole truth.

"I see," Inutaisho said not totally believing him. "And tell me how are you and Sesshomaru doing? Are you getting along?"

"We get along ok. We still have our sibling rivalry," Inuyasha lied.

"Okay," Inutaisho said deciding not to push anymore. "You said before that Tetsusaiga has a third attack, though I remember it only having 'Kaze no Kizu' and 'Bakuryuuha.' How did it get a third attack?"

"Uh…well you see…I kind of broke it," Inuyasha said tumbling over his words.

"WHAT? You let Tetsusaiga get broken?" Inutaisho asked irately.

"Well it was broke in a fight but I had Totsusai fix it. According to Myouga when my fang was used to put it back together, it created yet another attack." Inuyasha told him. "I'll explain everything when we get home, ok?"

"I still have a question," Kagome said breaking up the father-son conversation. "If you are Inuyasha's father, why did you demand that he fight you?"

"As I said before, Inuyasha had to prove himself. If I would have found out that he hasn't improved any since being a kid then I probably wouldn't have let him enter the Western Lands. I knew he had improved though so that wasn't an issue, I wasn't to see exactly how much he has improved and I must say he has made me proud."

"uh.. Thanks." Inuyasha said in a very low voice that it could barely be heard.

"Hey Inuyasha." Miroku said speaking up. "I thought you said before that you didn't even remember what you father looked like. So how was it that you knew it was him when we got here?"

"I may forget a face, but I never forget a scent. Inu-youkai have a habit of always remembering any scent they come across."

"Well I think I'll let you go. You still have a ways until you're home. I'd say that at the earliest, you'll be there by tomorrow night, if not the day after." Inutaisho said. "I am going to go now. There will be a feast for when you arrive and I can't wait to hear about your travels for the Shikon Jewel which Myouga mentioned." With that Inutaisho wasted no time and was gone.

"Well that was interesting," Shippo said after a moment of silence.

"Let's get something to eat and then we'll set out," Inuyasha said. "It's only the middle of the day and I want to hurry."

"Why do you want to hurry?" Kagome asked.

"Because my father thinks that at the earliest we'll be there by tomorrow night. I want to get there by tomorrow morning or early day. I want to prove him wrong." Inuyasha said. "Why do you have a problem, wench?"

"Not all of us are demons and going to be able to just continue to run there," Kagome said.

"That's why I'm gonna carry you and Sango and the pervert can ride on Kirara." Inuyasha said.

"I take offense to being labeled, 'the pervert.' I have a name," Miroku said.

"Yeah but you are a pervert so until you stop being one, I'll call you a pervert," Inuyasha said. He then turned back to Kagome, "Are you satisfied now, wench?"

"Yeah," Kagome said as she thought to herself, "_I should be mad at him for calling me wench but he hasn't called me it in a while so I guess I could let him go. Jeez, I'm acting like I miss him calling me a wench_." Kagome was snapped out of her thoughts as Inuyasha waved a hand in front of her face, "sorry Inuyasha, did you say something?"

"Yeah, I said that I want you to make some ramen," Inuyasha said.

"Fine but you have to go get some water," Kagome told him as she handed him a container for water. He didn't care as long as he got his ramen.

*****

Inuyasha was the first done which wasn't surprising. He loved ramen plus he was in a hurry. Everyone else though took their time. There was some conversing but it was Kagome who finally spoke up to Inuyasha, "Inuyasha, did you use the jewel to wish back your father? Or wasn't he dead to begin with?"

"Listen, as I told my father, I'll explain everything once we get home. That way I only have to say everything once," Inuyasha said. "Now hurry, I want to leave in a few minutes. We're not going to stop until the dusk. Then we can eat again and we're going to get up early and finish our journey. We should be there by noon tomorrow."

"One last question," Kagome said as Inuyasha groaned. "Why did you lie to your father about Sesshomaru?"

"Long ago, he was the only thing keeping us from killing each other," Inuyasha began. "He wanted us to get along and get over our nasty sibling rivalry. He had hoped that his death would bring us closer and stop our fighting but instead it got worse. I wanted him to be happy so I lied and told him that we got along. Understand?"

"Yes I do. Thank you for telling me," Kagome said

*****

Just as Inuyasha had said, they had traveled until dusk and set out early the next morning. He hadn't gotten them up at the crack of dawn but it was early enough for people to be cranky. "Can't we just rest a little more, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked from his back. Even though she wasn't actually walking, she couldn't fall asleep on his back with all the running. 

"Will you quit complaining? We've been going for a few hours and you haven't quite complaining. We'll be there before you know it." Inuyasha said. There was a big hill up ahead but it was nothing to Inuyasha. He was on top within 2 seconds. When he reached the top, he stopped. Kagome felt Inuyasha sliding her off his back. He turned and waiting for Kirara to catch up.

"So you letting us take a break?" Sango asked as her, Miroku, and Shippo dismounted Kirara.

"Feh," was his replied. "You can take a break just over this hill." That was when everyone turned around and saw what was beyond the hill. Everyone gasped in surprise.

  
**_&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

  
Well that's another chapter finished. This cliffhanger wasn't as bad as the last one. Surprisingly this chapter turned out to be longer than I expected. I hope you're happy with it. Well the chapter following the next one will have all the answers so just hold on a little longer for it. Well I hate to say this but I'm still on edge and in a rush so I'm not going to put in the names of all the people that reviewed. I'll put all of you in the next chapter so don't worry. I know I want to say more but I can't remember. So join me next time for:

**Chapter 9: Give a Tour**


	10. Chapter 9 The Tour

I'm over 100 reviews. I so happy that I'm updating with 2 chapters. There is another reason but I'll mention that later. First review responses:

**_daddys little angel_** - I'm dealing with your review first for many reasons. I will explain my last response to you. When you mentioned about dying to know what's going to happen, I joked in return saying that the cure was another chapter. Secondly I know you didn't faint or otherwise you couldn't have kept typing. For the second time I was joking. I know what sarcasm is but even before, you weren't using sarcasm, you were joking. Plus sarcasm is meant for spoken word and when its used in typing it is hard to realize if sarcasm is used. That is why I'm not sure about the last sentence of your newest review. I don't know whether you mean it or are being sarcastic. I must say though even if you are being sarcastic, that last part was rude and out of line. Your review really did affect me. I am sorry if you think I made you look stupid. That was not my intention and it never is. This response isn't either. If you choose to not review any more of my story, fine. That is your decision. I can't force you. That's about all I have to say on this matter, so have a good day.

**_ANNE (v) 79_** - well in these next two chapters, you'll have your answers.

**_Silent Dark_** - Well I hate to ruin your day but we won't see much of Sess in this story. He will make an appearance in just a few chapters. Do you think he's actually going to sit still if he finds out his father is alive? But as I said we won't see much of him. He will be talked about but not much more.

**_Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess_** - Who was watching her? Well that's the real question. As I said before, you won't find that out for a while so I hope you have patience. As for hoser, I don't totally recall what that means.

**_Black Dice_** - I had no problem reading your story. It was my pleasure. In the next chapter everyone will find out about Inuyasha's father but you might get a small idea from this chapter.

**_Explainatron_** - I wouldn't call the ability to absorb powers from other demons a power, I more consider it a special ability. As for that though, I hadn't known that until yesterday when I watched that episode. Just to let you and everyone know, I have seen up to and including episode 74. I have up to 115 just haven't had the time to watch. Hopefully I will within the next few weeks. As for my grammar, like I said before it sucks. I know.

**_badgerwolf_** - as I said its no problem. I got a good laugh out of it and so did all my friends and relatives. So you can come out of hiding.

_**Burnsybabe**_ - I'm updating okay. Also since before to me you seemed to act like you weren't going to have access to the internet after Sunday because of this I busted my ass and I wrote 2 chapters rather than 1. So that if I was right you'll have your answers. I hope you enjoy.

**_ssp51201_** - Well you'll have your answers in the next 2 chapters. As for the guy/girl issue, it wasn't that someone asked me. Someone happened to comment that I was a lady and I just set the record straight.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Congrats, if I'm correct you're have the 100th review. I'm glad you loved/hated the cliffhanger. As for the email no prob.

**Personal Note** - Well I talked with Physics teacher and though I should have gotten a C+ or B-, he gave me a B. Unfortunately, I didn't have the 3.2 I needed so I talked with my Calc II teacher. I did that today and I was able to talk him into bumping up my grade from a B+ to a A-. So I have the 3.2 and I can get into my major. 

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha though I'm looking into renting Jaken. I could use a servant/personal punching bag. On with the story:

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 9: The Tour  


"You can take a break just over this hill." That was when everyone turned around and saw what was beyond the hill. Everyone gasped in surprise.

Beyond them was a castle of enormous size. It was larger than Naraku's or any other castle they had been to on their journey. A small river seemed to run right though the middle. While three of the sides had a wall around it, the other side was protected by a mountain.

"Is this your home, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked.

"You could say that. My father had many homes throughout his lands. This wasn't my main home but it was my father's main home. My mother liked to stay at a smaller home that was in a small city. I never thought, I'd say this, but it's good to be home." Inuyasha said full of emotion. Realizing that he said something soft he quickly tried to make up for it, "Well let's go or are you just going to stand out here all day?" Inuyasha walked off towards the entrance.

"Wait for us," Miroku called as everyone hurried up to catch up with Inuyasha. It took them 10 minutes to walk down the hill and to the entrance.

They looked up at the huge door that stood before them. Sango was the first to ask, "I think we're all gonna have to work together to push this door open."

"Nah," Inuyasha said. "Shippo can open it."

"What me?" Shippo asked. "I'll never be able to open that door."

"Just go up there and push it open," Inuyasha said glaring at him. Kagome was about to yell at him and tell him there was no way Shippo could open it when Shippo agreed to at least try. Shippo legs were shaking as he walked up to the door. He had no more placed his hand on it and it started to open. Everyone watched in amazement. As it opened they expected someone opening it on the other side but no one was there.

"I did it?" Shippo said with a bit of confusion.

"A long while ago a spell was cast on the entrance. As long as the visitor has not evil intention, the door will open to them," Inuyasha said as he led the way inside and everyone followed. Once they were inside the door closed itself. Everyone looked around. The place was even more beautiful from the inside. In the end everyone's eyes caught on two people in the middle of the courtyard. One they recognized as Inutaisho since they had just seen him the other day. The other was known only to Inuyasha. Kagome thought the other person was familiar but they were too far away.

"Inuyasha, you're early," Inutaisho called as he and the other person made their way to the new visitors. "I should have expected this. Whenever I say something you try to go beyond it."

As they got closer Kagome could clearly see who the other person was. Only a few words managed to escape her lips, "I don't believe it."

"What is it, Kagome?" Sango asked. She noticed how Kagome's eyes stayed fixed on the stranger. "Do you know who she is?"

Before Kagome could form a reply, the two had reached the group and the lady reached out and hugged Inuyasha saying, "Welcome home, son." Everyone was speechless. Just yesterday they had learned that Inuyasha's father was alive and here they are finding out that Inuyasha's mother is alive as well. 

"I'm getting even more confused," Kagome said.

"Don't worry," Inutaisho said. "Inuyasha will explain everything. I'm not even sure of everything yet. But first, Inuyasha show your friends around. When you are finished giving them a tour, we'll be waiting in the study. Do you remember where it is?"

"I think so; to the right of the bedrooms right?" Inuyasha asked.

"Yes, well we will see you then," Inutaisho said as he and Inuyasha's mother quickly ran off.

"Well we might as well get started," Inuyasha said to his friends. "We are right now in the main courtyard. This place has many buildings so you might find yourself lost if you don't listen." Everyone quickly tuned in to what Inuyasha was saying. "As you can see, the place is practically surrounded by a small garden but there are some other larger gardens. As you can see there are two main buildings in front of us. The one on the right is a dojo. The one on the left is a main hall for any gatherings. I guess my father will have the feast there tomorrow."

"Won't that be a bit big for just us?" Miroku asked.

"All feasts are held in the main hall. Don't worry about it. I want to get this over so I can stop playing tour guide," Inuyasha said leading them on farther into the castle. 

They found out that the small gardens which went along the walls were nothing compared to the larger gardens that Inuyasha spoke of. Flowers of all kinds grew in the gardens. There was even a tree that was just a slight bit smaller than the God Tree. They found out that the mountain did more than protect the castle. There was a hot spring coming from the mountains. There were many other buildings in the castle. All were connected via a small covered wooden walkway. The living quarters were in the middle of the castle. There were enough rooms to accommodate an army.

"Well, I'm pretty much done. All that's left is the study," Inuyasha said as he made walked away from the bedrooms to the only building they hadn't been to yet. Inuyasha stopped just before the door, "this is the study. If you ever need some quiet time you can probably come here. There's also a library in here so if you want to read you can find things in here." 

Everyone except Shippo was paying attention to him. Shippo seemed to be sniffing the air. Shippo looked up to Inuyasha with disbelief on his face. "Go ahead brat. You can open the door," Inuyasha told him with a smirk. Shippo quickly pushed the door open. It wasn't like the entrance so it took some effort but when it was open once again everyone found themselves gasping.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well this chapter is done. I think this cliff hanger would have been interesting if not for me putting up both chapters at once. I hope you all enjoyed them. Its 3 AM right now and ff.net seems to be down so I won't be mentioning reviewers again. Sorry. Not to mention I'm tired and want to sleep. Once again I feel I have more to say but don't know what to say. Well continue on to:

  
**Chapter 10: Inuyasha Explains It All**


	11. Chapter 10 InuYasha Explains It All

Well not much to say. I'm being really nice updating with two chapters. I'm being really nice. I hope you're happy.

Disclaimer - Are you people deaf, I said I don't own Inuyasha so leave me alone already.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 10: Inuyasha Explains It All

Everyone gasped at what was in the room. They had only expected to see Inuyasha's mother and father in the room but there were seven other people in the room. Two were demons and the other five were human. Though Kagome only recognized one she could figure out who they were.

The one that Kagome did recognize quickly ran up to them, "Sister," he said as he jumped towards Sango.

Sango was speechless. She couldn't believe what see saw before her eyes. "Is that really you, Kohaku?" she asked.

"Of course it's me," Kohaku responded. "We were wondering how long it was going to take you to get here." Kohaku quickly pulled her to the two people he had been standing with before.

"Mother, father, what is going on?" Sango said as she looked at her parents.

"I don't really know. Me and your mother aren't the only ones back alive. Our fellow villagers are alive as well. We've all in the dark about this," her father told her.

Meanwhile, Miroku walked to another man in a monk outfit and a woman beside him. The man spoke first, "I see you have managed to defeat Naraku. Well done son."

"I can't take all the credit," Miroku told his father. "It was actually Inuyasha that defeated Naraku. I was just there to help out in the battle."

At the same time, Shippo ran over to the two kitsune demons. "Father. Mother. It's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too son. I see you've grown up quite a bit," his mother told him.

"But how?" Shippo asked.

"I think everyone has that question," his father said. "And the only one that can answer that is your friend, Inuyasha." Everyone seemed to looked at Inuyasha at once.

Inuyasha watched all of them staring at him including his mother, father, and Kagome. "I guess I'll explain, but quit staring at me! I think it's best everyone sits down. This is going to take a while." He looked around to his friends first, "you guys are gonna have to wait." He started on his story before anyone could question him and they soon understood. Inuyasha spoke about everything starting with him meeting Kikyo up until the defeat of Naraku. Then he looked at everyone, "and with that we completed the Shikon jewel. That night I told Myouga of a plan of mine and I had him set out on it. The next day, I demanded the jewel from Kagome, remember?" he said looking at Kagome. She simply nodded. "Well I did make a wish but unlike you and Sango thought, it did grant my wish."

"So we know what the end result of the wish was but what was it exactly," Kagome asked.

"I wish that everyone we cared about be brought back to life," Inuyasha told her.

Kagome was thinking something at the moment but didn't want to voice her thought. It seemed though by luck that Miroku was thinking the same thing and asked it any way, "Does that mean Kikyo is back?" Kagome stiffed as he asked.

"I don't think so," Inuyasha said. "As we've seen, you can't bring a person back to life if their soul has already been reincarnated. Since Kagome is her reincarnation she stayed dead." 

Kagome started to get sad at this. "_Inuyasha's probably mad that he can't be with Kikyo. All because of me_," Kagome thought to herself.

Inuyasha just continued speaking, "I think it's better this way." Inuyasha looked at Kagome and noticed that she had a sad face but he watched it quickly change to a smile after what he had said. "Well after I made the wish, we made our way to Kaede's village. All the while, Myouga was carrying out my plan." Inuyasha then looked to the newly revived members in the room, "I take it that he visited all of you and asked you to come here." Everyone in the room nodded or spoke in agreement. "I see that the wish was slightly different with other people. For most of you, it just brought back your parents but in your condition Sango, it seemed you cared enough for you villagers that it brought them back as well."

No one really knew what to say. It was surprising that Inuyasha had actually thought this out let alone be nice enough to actually do it. Shippo was the first to act. He quickly jumped on Inuyasha hugging him, "thank you so much Inuyasha."

"Yes, I must offer my thanks as well," Miroku said. 

"Thank you very much, Inuyasha. This means a lot to me. You can actually be nice when you want to be." Sango said.

"Yeah right," Inuyasha said as he tried to peel Shippo off of him. "I just didn't want to be a full demon anymore and I wasn't about to become a human so I just wished the first thing that came to me." Inuyasha said trying to think up an excuse for being nice.

"_You knew exactly what you were doing, Inuyasha_," Kagome thought, "_You've got a good heart. I just hope that now you'll start to show it more_." Kagome just smiled as everyone thanked Inuyasha and he continued to try and make it out that he wasn't a nice guy.  


**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

  
As I said ff.net is down so no thanks or referrals now. I hope everyone is happy with answers now. But this isn't the end of all the interest stuff. Fluff is next and its coming full force. I hope everyone likes it. So come back next time for:

  
**Chapter 11: Mother knows best**


	12. Chapter 11 Mother Knows Best

**Personal Note**: sorry about not getting this chapter out sooner. The main reason behind this is because I'm right now suffering with a cold which is a total pain in the ass. A small side reason is the Christmas season. I hope to update this story by the day after Christmas but don't hold you breath, it may be a day or two longer. Not to mention I'm still a little uncertain about a few things in the next few chapters.

**_lilemmy_** - Well I hope this has enough fluff to satisfy you. Enjoy.

**_ANNE (v)79_** - Well as you'll see at the end of this chapter, I don't have the next chapter done. Instead I usually know whats going to happen and I create the title based on that before I've even written the chapter. I'm not totally sure about the next chapter so I don't have a title for it.

**_JadedKatrina_** - Your question about Inuyasha's feelings towards Kagome will hopefully start to be answered in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY, okay?

A Wish From the Heart

  
Chapter 11: Mother Knows Best  


Inuyasha was trying his best to block out all the thanks he was getting. He wasn't used to being thanked. "Uhh, I'm gonna go get some fresh air," with that Inuyasha made a hasty retreat out of the room.

"I think we smothered him a bit too much," Miroku said.

Inutaisho stood up and looked at all of Inuyasha's friends. "All of you are welcome to stay as long as you like. Treat this as your home. If you want to do anything you are welcome to. And as I said before tomorrow we will have a feast in the main hall." With that everyone decided to go their own way. Kagome though decided to stay in the study and look over all the books that were in there.

"Looking for anything in particular?" a voice said. Kagome turned to see Inuyasha's mother.

"No, not really. I'm just seeing what's here," Kagome said.

"I must say, you are a very powerful miko," she said. "It's very rare for such a power to exist and also at such a young age."

"You can tell?" Kagome asked. It was then that Kagome realized it. "You're a miko as well, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am. I'm not even that powerful as a miko. I guess Inuyasha didn't tell you but since I had died I'm sure he didn't want to talk about it too much."

"Inuyasha has been like that. He doesn't like to talk about things that are close to him," Kagome said. "Though deep down he really is a nice guy."

"Yes, I know that and you're the person that brings it out of him." Kagome could only blush as Inuyasha's mother said this. "Inuyasha was a very nice and kind boy when he was young but he was often picked on because of being a hanyou. I shielded him from as much of the insults as I could but I knew that if anything should happen to me he would have a rough time in life. From his story, I could tell that after my death he became angry at the world. And he closed himself from the world. It seemed like Kikyo had helped him but when Naraku spilt them he closed off again and I think far worse than before. Betrayal has a harsh effect on people. Yet you have managed to help him. Thanks to you he's returning to that kind boy I remember."

"I wouldn't say that it's because of me. Inuyasha has always been a big softy it's just that he hides it. I'd say that it's because of all our travels that he's starting to show it."

"That may be true but the main force is you. You may deny it but it's true and you know it. I can see it in your eyes. Just like I can see that you care for him," Inuyasha's mother said as Kagome blushed. "He's lucky to have a nice woman like you around. Well I think I've embarrassed you enough. I'm going to go now. Have a nice day." With that Inuyasha's mother walked out leaving Kagome to her own thoughts. 

Kagome stayed in the study for another half an hour looking over the books when she finally decided that she wanted to try the hot spring that was within the castle. As she walked out she bumped into Sango's father. "I'm sorry. I should have watched where I was going," Kagome apologized.

"I am at fault too," he replied. "Have you seen Sango at all?"

"No, I haven't," Kagome replied. "I can help you look though. She may be at the hot spring which is where I'm headed." While they walked towards the hot spring, they spotted Sango. She was sitting down talking to Miroku. Rather than intrude, Kagome and Sango's father sat back and watched the scene before them.

"What exactly is Sango's relationship with the monk?" her father whispered to Kagome.

"She'll tell everyone that they're just friends but I believe she likes him more than just a friend," Kagome replied. "As for Miroku, I believe he feels the same way. Maybe now that Naraku has been defeated they can be more honest with each other." They continued to watch the scene in front of them until they saw Miroku's hand moving towards Sango's behind. Sango's father quickly moved to stop him but Kagome stretched her arm in front of him. "Just wait and watch. Trust me." He looked as though Kagome was crazy but decided to trust her. She had no reason to lie. He watched as when Miroku's hand finally did touch Sango's butt. As soon as she felt it she quickly slapped him hard. They could hear Sango yelling at Miroku. Kagome turned to Sango's father, "You see, she takes care of herself very well and even though she'll deny it I think she likes Miroku's attention. Well I think I'm gonna go to the hot spring. Have a nice day." Kagome said as she walked off leaving Sango's father totally confused on what to do.

*****

Inuyasha sat watching the sun off in the distance. In about an hour, the sun would set. "_It looked like Kagome liked the wish that I made. She had on a beautiful smile as everyone was complimenting me_," Inuyasha thought. "_I wish I could make her smile more like that rather than making her cry_." Inuyasha was so caught up on his thoughts that he didn't realize someone was behind him. He finally realized it when the person placed their arms around his shoulders and pulled him close. Inuyasha immediately recognized this as being one of his mother's loving gestures. "Hello mother," Inuyasha said.

"Hello son," she replied. "Mind telling me what you were thinking?"

"Do I have to?" Inuyasha asked. He knew he couldn't keep anything from his mother. He had never lied to her and he probably never would even if all this time had gone by.

"Well I'm not going to force you but I'd figure it would help if you would talk to me," she said. "I already know it's about Kagome but what is it specifically about?"

Inuyasha stood there confused for a bit. "I could never hide anything from you, could I?" Inuyasha asked. With a hint of reluctance Inuyasha continued, "I'm trying to figure out exactly how I feel about Kagome."

"Do you love her?" she asked.

"I'm not totally sure I know what love is. I believed I loved Kikyo and I told you before what happened."

"I wouldn't say you loved Kikyo. At first, you probably were just lonely and looking for a friend or companion and that's what Kikyo was. Also she offered a chance at a normal life of being human. Now when she was brought back to life, I'd say that it was just a sense of duty or promise that you convinced yourself that you still loved her. You wept when she died but that's because you lost your friend. Love is something deeper. It's caring and trusting the other person. You usually want what's best for them. Kikyo wanted you to turn to human because that was best for her because she didn't want to be seen having a relationship with a hanyou. Kagome on the other hand doesn't care that you're a hanyou. She likes you for who you are. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I think I do," Inuyasha said. Usually talking about Kikyo was so hard for him but with his mother it was so much easier. "Okay so maybe I love Kagome but there's so many things standing in the way. First off, I'm from here and she's from the future. I couldn't ask her to stay here where it would be dangerous and her world is so weird to me that I don't think I could live in her world."

"Inuyasha, when Kagome first came to the past was she confused?" Inuyasha's mother asked while Inuyasha only nodded. "I think it would be safe to say that this world was weird to her and also as you said dangerous. But she kept coming back, not just to hunt for jewel shards but also to be with the people she cared about mostly you. She didn't have to come back for your journey here but she did. I'm sure she didn't understand your world just like you don't understand hers but she put up with it because of you. Are you willing to make the same sacrifice for her?"

"You know I never thought about it that way before," Inuyasha said. "I'd have to say that yes, I'd be willing to make that sacrifice besides I'd be a chicken if I didn't."

Inuyasha's mother had to laugh as she listened to her son try to save his pride. "You also said that you didn't want to ask her to stay in this world because it is too dangerous for her. Let her make that decision. She's risked so much already and you've managed to protect her so just let her make her own decisions."

"Okay, I can do that but what about me being a hanyou. She accepts me but what about the rest of the people in her world? They're not used to demons? They think we're all myths," Inuyasha said.

"As a miko, I could teach Kagome a simple concealing spell to cast on you. It would easily hide you," she told her son. "The only draw back to the spell is that you have to keep calm. If you get worked up, you demon powers will start to overdo the concealing spell. This doesn't mean you'd become full demon though."

"Here's another thing. Kagome is human and will only live for so long while I'll live longer because of my demon side," Inuyasha stated.

"I never told you this, did I? You were too young to understand back then. Your father and I came across the same problem but the answer was once again simple. There is a miko spell that will join two different life forces together. It makes it that I can live just as long as a demon so I would be able to live with your father. In your case, it would make Kagome live as long as another hanyou, though I'm not sure how different that is from a demon's lifetime." Inuyasha's mother just smiled at her son. "Any more excuses as to why it wouldn't work?"

"What if she doesn't like me? I don't think I could stand that rejection," Inuyasha said.

"That's another thing about love. You have to put your pride and heart on the line to find love. You may get rejected sometimes and it may hurt but once you find that true love all of the previous hurt will go away and your this love will make up for it many times over. Trust me in the end it will be worth it. Besides I'm pretty sure Kagome feels the same way about you, you've just been too stubborn to see it. Now go, find Kagome and talk with her."

Inuyasha turned around and faced his mother. "Thank you," with that he gave her a hug and ran off to find Kagome.

*****

Kagome had just gotten out of the hot spring. She had finished getting dressed and was walking along when she saw Inuyasha. "Hey Inuyasha, what are you up to?" she asked.

"Nothing much, just thinking," Inuyasha lied. He didn't want to admit that he knew she was at the hot spring and had been waiting for her. Before she could ask any more questions, he said, "I want you to come with me. There's something I want to show you." With out saying any more he picked up Kagome bridal style cause it was quicker than having her get on his back. He quickly set off across the castle. In under a minute he arrived at a part of the castle that he hadn't shown everyone when he gave them the tour. It was a garden but quite bigger than the others. Once there he set her down on her own feet and allowed her to take in the scenery for herself.

As Kagome looked around she couldn't believe the beauty of the garden. There were all kinds of flowers and trees in the garden. There was even a large sakura tree (cherry blossom tree to those who don't know). "This is beautiful," Kagome said in awe. 

"This is one of two special gardens in the castle. This is the West garden and the other is the East garden," Inuyasha said as he walked under the sakura tree.

Kagome followed him. "Why didn't you show us this before?"

"As I said this is special and so I wanted to wait until the right time to show it to you. Plus I wanted to show it only to you," Inuyasha said blushing a little bit.

"Thank you," Kagome said stuttering a bit while hiding her own blush. "So what's so special about this garden?"

"You'll see in just a bit," Inuyasha said as he sat down leaning his back against the sakura tree. Inuyasha then gathered all the courage he could to ask his question, "When this is over and everyone splits up, you're gonna head back to your time, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess," Kagome said a little sad.

"I was just wondering if you'd mind me spending some time in your world?" Inuyasha asked. "Because I won't have anything to do here."

Kagome was ecstatic. He was asking to spend time with her. Well not her but spend time in her world which meant she could spend more time with him. "Of course you can," she said happily. She was about to ask him why he wanted to come to her time when he interrupted her.

"Now you'll find out why this garden is special," Inuyasha said as he pointed in front of them. Kagome had been staring at him that she hadn't noticed anything else around them. As she looked where he pointed she saw that the sun was setting. It seemed to make the garden looked even more beautiful then before.

"I don't know what to say it's gorgeous," Kagome said. 

"This is also known as the Sunset Garden and the East garden is the Sunrise Garden," Inuyasha told her. "I'm glad you like it. Not many people know about these 2 gardens. My parents told me that I should bring here only people I truly care for." Inuyasha seemed to blush some more.

"Thank you, Inuyasha," Kagome said as she leaned her head on his shoulder. Until that moment Kagome hadn't realized how tired she was. She found that she was barely able to keep her eyes open as she watched the sun set. Luckily she didn't have to worry about her head falling off Inuyasha's shoulder cause she felt an arm around her, holding her tight. It wasn't long after Kagome fell asleep that Inuyasha could feel himself tired as well. Though he usually didn't need as much sleep, the rush to the castle had tired him out more than he wanted to admit. In a matter of minutes, he and Kagome were laying under the sakura tree asleep.  


  
**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's the end of this chapter. Now for the big question for everyone. Who should show up next:

1. Sesshomaru  
2. Kouga

Well let me know what you think most likely the one that everyone chooses will show up in the next chapter. I have to ask: does anyone know any of the parents names other than Inutaisho? I don't know any names, so any help would be appreciated. There is still a lot left to this story. I also need to mention to everyone my knowledge of IY. I've seen up to and including episode 87 and I also went ahead and watched 124 *spoiler* I wanted to see that episode cause I figured Kikyo died in that episodes. yay. I've also seen both movies. I want to see the third. IY's father is in it. Well now for my referral:

Half Demon Prep's and Punk Rock Miko's by Inuyasha Loves Kagome 4391 storyid=1602835

Now to thank people for reviewing: jenna, DragonRose13, Ryguy, Sakume Nohara, lilemmy, Takerus Lost Angel, ANNE(v)79, badgerwolf, Burnsybabe, Ryngrl5, Black Dice, InuShemeeko, Lynns, Silent Dark, JadedKatrina, ssp51201, valou, explaintron, Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess, Kourtney1617, b00kperson, resq188, unvoicedsigner, ta-ti, Umi Mikazuki, Fukashi, keri, Ryu Sachiko Sama, Shadow Tsunami, Kris Black, Kay Kylo, Anonymous, ashitaka666, moonsilver, seikkyoukuka, and Silver Goddess1.

Well I don't know what else to say other than: **Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.**


	13. Chapter 12True Lord of the Western Lands

Well I didn't exactly count the votes but I don't think I really had to. Kouga only got like 1 or 2 votes while everyone else was cheering for Sesshomaru/Fluffy. I'd like to know where he got that nickname. I've seen a lot of the series but I've never seen anyone not even Rin call him that. There's a lot of stuff like that in fanfic's that I can't find in the anime. Maybe its in the manga or maybe its just become a favorite among fanfic writers but if anyone knows, please clue me in. So as I said Sesshomaru won by a landslide. Sesshomaru is the new president. Oops, wrong voting (I'm getting as bad as the voters in Florida *no offense*). This chapter is about Sesshomaru.

**_lilemmy_** - I, myself, was surprised as to how good the fluff turned out. I was worried at first but once I finished I found that I really liked it. As for the West/Sunset Garden, that came to me just a little before writing the chapter. I was planning on the garden and the sunset but the name of the garden was new and I really liked the idea. As for Kouga, I wonder what you'll think of what's going to happen when he shows up. I can't say my idea is original since I got the idea from another story but I really liked it. So I'm going to use something like it. If everything goes as planned Kouga will show up in Chapter 14.

**_Noel_** - thank you for clueing me in about Kikyo. Why can't she just stay dead. I was even going around singing "Ding Dong the bitch is dead. Which bitch? The Wicked (or Evil) bitch." I really despised Kikyo but she's staying dead in this fic.

**_ Takerus Lost Angel_** - You've only seen up to episode 7 and then you jumped to 112?!? How do you know what's still going on? I'd have no clue. I'm sad to inform you but you are the only person who voted for Kouga to show up first. But never fear, Kouga will be showing up in Chapter 14 and I mean my chapter 14 not ff.net's cause they count the prologue.

Well once again, I'll put in useless personal information if anyone cares. My Christmas went good, I hope everyone else's did. I got DDR for Christmas so I'm gonna have some fun. Only problem is that it doesn't have Captain Jack or Freckles. My 2 favorites songs. A good friend of mine got me a DBZ wall scroll which is pretty cool. I got him a limited edition BGC 2040 collector's box so its cool. Other than that, I haven't done jack the past few days. I hope everyone's happy, I'm typing this up at almost 4 AM. I'm at least feeling better cause I no longer have a cold. Other than that I've got nothing new.

Disclaimer: Santa didn't bring me IY or any other anime characters for christmas so I still can't say that I own them. On with the story:

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 12: The True Lord of the Western Lands

Inuyasha slowly opened his eyes. It took him a few seconds to realize where he was. He remembered he was in the Sunset Garden. He looked to his right side and there was Kagome still sleeping. He had to admit she looked even more beautiful as she lay there. Just looking at her and thinking about the chance that she might feel the same about him, he was willing to admit his feelings for her right then and there. Kagome chose that moment to wake up. As she awoke, she stretched out her arms and accidently hit him in the face

"Ow, watch what your doing," Inuyasha grumbled already forgetting about admitting his feelings.

Kagome quickly did a double take as she realized where she was. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I didn't even realize that I fell asleep. Did you sleep out here with me?"

"Yes," Inuyasha replied. "I wasn't about to leave you out here all night and I didn't want to wake you so I just stayed here."

"That was sweet of you," Kagome said with a smile. "And so was that wish you made. I told you before that you were a big softie. All you have to do is show it a little more."

"Feh, whatever," Inuyasha said not really denying it. "Get on my back, I want to get something to eat and I figure you're hungry too?"

"Yes, I don't think I've had anything to eat since we got a snack on the tour you gave us yesterday," Kagome replied as she got on Inuyasha's back. With that Inuyasha quickly ran off towards the kitchen.

*****

The day seemed to pass like every other uneventful day. But in the evening was when the feast began. Everyone was seated in the main hall. Inside there was one long table at which everyone sat. On one side Sango and Miroku's family sat with Miroku and Sango sitting next to one another. On the other was Shippo and Inuyasha's family. Kagome sat between Inuyasha and Shippo. 

Inutaisho coughed to get everyone's attention. He then motioned for everyone to raise their glasses which were filled with sake except for Shippo and Kohaku who were too young. "I want to give thanks to Inuyasha for finding such a wonderful group of friends. I also want to thank all of them for doing something great as defeating Naraku and proving what humans and demons can do when they work together." Everyone cheered in response.

Shippo's father was the next to speak as he raised his glass as well, "I'd also like to give thanks to Inuyasha. For one, without your wish I would never have gotten another chance to see my son grow up. Secondly, I want to thank both Inuyasha and Kagome for taking care of my son. He spoke highly of you." Once again there were cheers. 

Inuyasha leaned to Kagome and whispered, "that brat actually spoke nice of me. That's a first."

Kagome chuckled a bit but whispered back, "yeah, I'm surprised as well, seeing as how you were always hitting him on the head." Inuyasha just gave a 'Feh' in response while Kagome stifled another laugh.

The feast continued as planned. Everyone was eating and telling stories of their adventures. Inuyasha's mother seemed to enjoy telling stories of Inuyasha's childhood. Inuyasha didn't say much other than trying to stop his mother from embarrassing him. It was only a little bit into the feast when Kagome looked over to Inuyasha and he didn't seem to be paying attention. He seemed to be sniffing the air. "Is something wrong, Inuyasha?"

"Yeah, I think I overlooked something or I should say someone," Inuyasha said as he stood up. Everyone had looked to him but he quickly said to them, "I'll be right back I need to take care of something." Inuyasha then left the room but Kagome followed him.

"Do you think I embarrassed him too much?" Inuyasha's mother asked her husband.

"No, not at all. This is a different matter. In fact, I think I should go as well. I will return soon," Inutaisho said as he left to follow.

*****

Inuyasha had walked out to the middle of the main courtyard when the entrance doors started to open. Inuyasha wasn't surprised by who stood there as the doors opened. When he had caught the scent, he realized the one person he hadn't thought of in his plans. His half-brother, Sesshomaru. The youkai wasted no time as he seemed to just suddenly appear 5 feet away from Inuyasha. "Might I exactly ask what you have done, Inuyasha?" he said coldly. "Last thing I knew, father was dead and his remains are in your eye. Now for some reason I smell his scent. How are you faking his scent?"

"I'm not faking his scent," Inuyasha said back.

"Really, well he's suppose to be dead. Do I have to check your eye to make sure," Sesshomaru said with a simple cracking of his knuckles.

"I don't think that is necessary," a voice called out. Sesshomaru looked over to see his father.

"How is this? You're suppose to be dead?" Sesshomaru asked as his voice almost changed tone.

"I think your brother can answer that," Inutaisho replied.

"I made a wish using the Shikon no Tama. Father being brought back to life was one of the results," Inuyasha told his brother.

"I see," Sesshomaru replied.

At this time another voice made itself known from behind Sesshomaru, "Lord Sesshomaru, Jaken is being mean again." Sesshomaru looked behind himself to see Rin standing there. Just then her stomach rumbled, "Lord Sesshomaru, Rin is hungry."

"After we leave, we will see about food," Sesshomaru said.

"Actually," Inutaisho interrupted, "we're having a feast in the main hall. If she would like some food she is welcome to have."

"May I, Lord Sesshomaru?" Rin asked politely.

"If you wish Rin."

"Kagome, will you please take Rin to the main hall," Inutaisho said to Kagome who had been hiding behind a tree. She quickly came out and proceeded to take Rin to the feast. "So I have heard about what you've been up to from Inuyasha."

"What exactly has he told you?" Sesshomaru asked.

"He told me that you and he no longer try to kill one another. You just have your sibling rivalry," Inutaisho replied.

"I will not disgrace my honor by lying as my brother has," Sesshomaru replied. "He has lied to you. I have tried to kill Inuyasha on many occasions. The first time I tried to take Tetsusaiga from him it cost me my arm but I returned later with a plan to steal it once again and when I had it I tried to kill him with it."

"I see," Inutaisho replied. "Believe it or not, I still hold both of you in high regard. Sesshomaru, you were honest to me even though I'm sure you knew that I wouldn't like the truth. Inuyasha, I'm not totally sure if your intention was to make your brother look better in my eyes or just telling me what I wanted to hear. That is why I still hold both of you in regard." Both of them chose not to say anything in return.

It was about that time that Kagome came back from the main hall. She had a question that was bothering her and decided to ask it. She first looked at Inutaisho, "Umm… if you were Lord of the Western Lands originally and when you died it passed onto Sesshomaru. Who is the Lord now that you have returned?" Even Sesshomaru looked a little confused and looked to Inutaisho for an answer.

"It is true that when I died the title passed to Sesshomaru. Me returning to life does not change that. Unless Sesshomaru chooses to give the title back to me, he remains Lord of the Western Lands and I have no problem with that. If you should ever need any help, do not be afraid to ask for help."

"I will, father," Sesshomaru said as he bowed.

"There is one thing, I'd like to do first though," Inutaisho said. "May I see Tensaiga?" Without any hassle, Sesshomaru handed over the sword. Inutaisho pulled it from its sheath and looked over it for a second. He then faced Sesshomaru and swung it. For a second, Kagome was surprised that Inutaisho would swing at his own son like that but she soon realized that he wasn't hurt. She remembered being told that Tensaiga was a healing sword. She looked and saw that Sesshomaru now had two capable arms. 

"You have returned my arm," Sesshomaru said. "I was not aware that Tensaiga had that power."

"Just as Tetsusaiga has more than just the Kaze no Kizu, so Tensaiga can do more than just return a person to life. Though, you wouldn't have been able to do this because the sword cannot be used on the wielder. That's why it was necessary for me to use it."

"For doing this, I am in you debt, father," Sesshomaru said seriously.

"All I ask is that you try to get along with your brother," the father replied. "I can't force you to get along with him but I ask that you try. It may take a hundred years or you may never get along but please try."

"I will try," Sesshomaru seemed to grind out in a very low tone of voice.

"Thank you. Now if you wish you may get something to eat as well," Inutaisho offered.

"I am not hungry at the moment, though if it is okay with you, I would like to look around," Sesshomaru said.

"By all means, this is still partly your home so feel free," his father replied. With that Sesshomaru headed off elsewhere within the castle and the others made their way back to the feast.

Inuyasha walked with Kagome and whispered to her, "the only reason he isn't eating with us is because he doesn't want to eat with humans."

"Well he promised he'd try to get along with you not like all humans," Kagome replied. "But will everyone be safe with Sesshomaru in the castle?"

"Everyone should be fine. Sesshomaru realizes that everyone here is a guest of father's, so he won't do anything," Inuyasha replied. "Now let's get back to the feast, I'm still hungry." Kagome gave a laugh as they walked back into the main hall.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's another chapter done with. As everyone can see, I haven't gotten rid of Sesshomaru yet. You probably won't see much of him next chapter if at all. Maybe see a bit of Rin. Next chapter is to talk a little about Rin, about relations between families and just to put off Kouga's appearance by one more chapter. I'm sure I have more to say but once again I'm at a lose for words since its almost 4 AM and I'm tired as ever. I should note that the Notes at the top and bottom correspond in time because I add them after the chapter is written. Okay now for a referral:

Take Me for Who I Am by btRkun storyid=1298243 very nice story that I read a while ago. Most stories up until now have been complete. This one is as well but from now on I might start mentioning ones that aren't. I know that last chapters was ongoing as well.

Thanks to all my reviewers: Sakume Nohara, lilemmy, jammies2000, Caligo Origuu, InuShemeeko, Defafaeth Mechqua, noel, K19137, Aeris219(aka keri), animesoul3, Ryu Sachiko Sama, firestarter8811, Lynns, Ryguy, Xxspit-firexX, Queeney, and Takerus Lost Angel. Thank you all.

See you next time for:

**  
Chapter 13: At the Feast** (I know the feast is talked about in this chapter but it isn't **really** talked about)


	14. Chapter 13 At the Feast

Well yet another chapter of my story. I really hope you people are happy. It is 4:30 AM and I've busted my butt since 12:30 AM to write this chapter. Don't ask me why I don't write in the day, who knows? If you are happening to read this right now I'll give you a small tidbit, A Wish From the Heart wasn't the original title of this story. I was simply going to call this 'Loved Ones' but when I went to upload the prologue I didn't like that idea and A Wish From the Heart popped in my head and I thought it was a catchy enough title so I used it. I'm not totally happy with this chapter title but since I already said what the title was going to be I'll stand by it.

**_Black Dice_** - There's actually a Kikyo plush? How could they make one for such a horrible character. lol.

**_Tsume Yamagata_** - I know some characters might act OOC but that's because I start to worry more about the plot of the story than I do about the characters of themselves. As for the spelling of Sesshomaru, I found out that I was spelling it incorrectly just like Tetsusaiga can be spelled differently but I decided to stick with the way I had started.

**_Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess_** - You do have the facts right. Fluffy-sama did walk off but I'm not really going to go into where he's headed. It really doesn't have anything to do with the story. He's just looking around the castle. Sesshomaru won't be in the story too much. He'll more be mentioned rather than actually in the story.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - yeah you said 112-26 but I understand now. Don't worry Kouga is coming next chapter. As for referrals I'm glad you like them.

**_Sunbeam1_** - you might be onto something there. Keep your ideas in mind as we get there in about 5 chapters. 

**_lilemmy_** - Thank you for the info about Sesshy. As for Fluffy Magazine, no I haven't heard of it but I did find a site where Fluffy answers emails. I will have to check out the site you told me about. As for Kouga's arrival, just wait and find out.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Well if you want to find out how it is when Kouga arrives find out next chapter. Sorry about you Dad, hope he's okay. I'm the one in my family that usually wrecks cars whether its driving through a stop sign or falling asleep at the wheel and totaling my car *very dangerous, I might add.*

**_IY/Kag fans_** - everyone seems to be wondering when IY and Kag will admit their feelings towards one another. Well I don't know when they will totally come out and say "I love you" to one another but I can tell you there's going to be a nice fluffy scene coming up in Chapter 15 most likely unless I decided to just add it to Chapter 14.

Well one more small note about this chapter before we begin. This chapter is a bit of filler but it was also to get some Miroku/Sango fluff. I realize that there isn't much of that in this story and there won't be much more of it. I'm much more concentrating on IY/Kag. I hope no ones mad about this. Well on with the chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY but I keep watch on eBay for him. So far only plushs.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 13: At the Feast

Kagome and Inuyasha walked back into the main hall. Miroku, Sango, and Shippo were the first to look at them but Miroku spoke up first, "So what how did it go with Sesshomaru?" Rin who was sitting next to Kohaku looked up when she heard Sesshomaru's name.

"It went," Inuyasha replied. "He'll be here in the castle but don't worry. He was here cause he realized that my father was back to life."

"I see," Miroku replied. "And how did he take it?"

"Who knows, he didn't seem affected by it but nothing ever seems to affect him," Inuyasha replied. "For some reason, father decided to restore Sesshomaru's arm using Tensaiga."

"Lord Sesshomaru's arm has been fixed?" Rin asked. Kagome nodded and smiled to the little girl who seemed pleased.

"Well that was nice of your father," Inuyasha's mother said.

"Doesn't that make Sesshomaru a little more dangerous?" Sango asked.

Kagome decided to help Inuyasha with all the questions by answering. "Inutaisho asked Sesshomaru to try and get along with Inuyasha. Sesshomaru agreed to try but who knows how well it will work."

"As I said, I can't force him to get along with Inuyasha," Inutaisho said as he entered. "At least this way, he'll try and if he doesn't you won't have to worry about him stealing the Tetsusaiga."

"That's right," Shippo said speaking up. "A person that's full demon can't touch the sword."

"I don't care. I'd never let him have it anyway," Inuyasha said. He then turned to his father, "I still don't think Sesshomaru and I can get along but I'll try. Anyway enough about that, I'm hungry."

"Well I hope you don't mind me asking but what does everyone have planned to do once they leave here?" Inuyasha's mother asked. "I'd be delighted to have everyone here forever but I highly doubt that that's what everyone wants," She said with a big smile.

Inuyasha spoke first. "Well, I'll take Kagome back to the Bone Eaters' Well and she can go back to her time. I'll be bored out of my mind here so I'll be going with her to keep an eye on her," Inuyasha said making up an excuse.

"To keep an eye on me?" Kagome said with some fake anger. "Last time I checked you're the one who asked to come to my time." 

Unfortunately Inuyasha couldn't think of something to say in rebuke so he just kept his head down to hide a blush. Inuyasha's mother gave a small laugh at her son's embarrassment. She knew he liked to hide his feelings but she believed he needed to start showing it.

The next to speak was Shippo's father. "Well unfortunately where we lived was destroyed by the Thunder Brothers so we'll have to rebuild a small house but I think we'll live a little closer to Musashi since Shippo has made friends near there and," he said as he looked to Kagome, "if you ever come back for a visit, Shippo won't be far. He seems to have grown quite fond of you."

[Author Note: For those who don't know Musashi is Kaede's Village. I'm pretty sure of this. It took me a while to find this info.]

"That's real nice," Kagome said. "I'll be sure to visit." Shippo looked please with a big smile as he hugged Kagome.

Miroku gave a small sigh as he took his turn to speak. "Well, the men from my family have always been wandering monks until they settle down with a family so I'll probably continue to wander around and help out people where I can," Miroku said. He seemed to speak cheerfully but there was an underlying sadness to it.

"We are going to go home and you are welcome to come home as well," Miroku's father said. "But if you wish to continue traveling you can do that as well, just remember you always have a home if you need."

Sango seemed to be a little sad and this did not escape her father. Over the past day of talking with his daughter, she had told him all about Miroku being a pervert and how she hated how he always groped her. It hadn't not escaped him though as to how he could tell she was in love with the boy even if she didn't admit it. He decided to speak up and help out his daughter if he could, "Actually Miroku, I was wondering if you would like to come stay at our village and help us exterminate demons."

Miroku looked shocked at this as did Sango. "Really?" Sango asked her father as she tried to hide her excitement and surprise.

"Yes, I'd be honored if he would join us. It was from some of your stories of you adventures that I remembered he'd be quite helpful," her father replied. "I remember the story you told me about how you tried your hardest to fight a demon bear and it turned out to be a ghost so no matter how much physical damage you did to it, it would recover. You were lucky to have Miroku there. I remember once I was in a fight like that and if it hadn't been for a passing by priest, I wouldn't have been able to do anything either." The father then looked back at Miroku, "What do you say?"

Miroku seemed to think about it for a little bit, "Do you mind if I think about it for a little bit?"

"I don't mind at all. Take your time in deciding though I may be leaving in the next few days," Sango's father said. And so it was his turn to answer the group question. "I'll probably be going back to our village. We have been rebuilding our village that had been destroyed by the demons. That is the reason I want to head back in a few days though Sango, you can stay here as long as you want. After the village is repaired, we'll see about returning to slaying demons. I must admit before coming here I didn't think so highly of demons and didn't think many existed that were nice. I believed that the evil demons outnumbered the good but after meeting all of you, my perspective has changed. This has been a helpful trip."

"That's good to hear," Inutaisho said. "This has been helpful to all of us by helping us make new friends and I think we all own that to our children." Everyone gave a small say of agreement. "I can't exactly say that I'm going to go home after I leave here seeing as how I'm already home," Inutaisho said with a small laugh, "but I think my wife and I might travel a bit around Japan to see how things have changed since we passed away. All of you who have come here, you are welcome to return at any time. If we are not here, make yourselves at home. Even if you are just passing by, feel free to stay for the night."

Everyone gave a little thanks to Inutaisho for his invitation. It was then they noticed that Rin had disappeared at some point in time but they didn't seem worried because they knew she had only gone off to find Sesshomaru. With that Inuyasha finally set his full attention on the food in front of him and started to eat.

*****

Later that night, Miroku found himself meditating in a small temple that was built within the castle. At least it seemed like he was meditating but if a person were to look close enough they would see that he was in fact just thinking to himself. The person that happened to find him like this was Sango. She had been looking for the monk and figured he'd be here. Ever since the feast she had wanted to talk to him. She had just been watching him and not wanting to disturb him when he spoke up, "Come in, Lady Sango."

"Am I interrupting you, houshi-sama?" Sango asked.

Miroku gave a small laugh, "not at all but please I think we've known each other long enough for you to call me by my name."

"Okay Miroku," Sango said a little nervous as she came into the room and sat down near Miroku but out of range of his hands. "But I'll only do that if you call me Sango instead of Lady Sango."

"That seems fair enough, Sango," Miroku said. "What can I help you with?"

"I was just wondering what you were thinking about," Sango said. 

Miroku seemed to give a small sigh about this. "I was merely thinking about the offer that your father had made to me today."

"I see," Sango said tensely. "It seemed that when my father asked you about it you seemed a little apprehensive about the idea. Is it me that is making you feel this way? Is it because of me that you don't want to join our village?"

"Well I'd be lying if I said no," Miroku said as he saw Sango start to tear up, "yet it's not as you think. I fear what you think of me joining your village that has me worried. I don't want to impose on your life. I don't know how you feel about the idea. I don't want you to feel as if I'm intruding on your own personal life. I know how you don't approve of my attitude around you sometimes so I wasn't sure if you wanted me to be part of your village."

"Miroku, I'd really like it if you joined my village. Don't assume that you know how I feel about things just ask me. Sure I think you're a bit perverted but if you just suddenly stopped acting perverted I would be worried because I've come to know you as a loyal, trust, and perverted friend," Sango said totally sincere. "I'm not totally happy with all the groping but at least you're not going around and groping every woman in sight. Now if only you'd stop the 'bear my child' line."

"Actually if you haven't noticed, I've stopped doing that," Miroku said. "I only did that before because I wanted to leave behind an heir to defeat Naraku if I could not. Now that Naraku has been defeated, I can go on with a normal life and find a woman to spend my life with."

Sango was touch by this. He wasn't being his normal perverted self but she was sure that somewhere he was still a bit of a pervert but as she said that's the person she'd grown to know and care for. "Miroku, I would love it if you'd join our village but the choice is still up to you."

"Knowing that you approve helps me make my decision. You may tell you father that I will gladly join the village," Miroku said.

Sango was happy now that she knew she still had a chance with Miroku. She wasn't totally paying attention to everything around her that she didn't notice that Miroku had gotten closer to her. She did notice though when she felt a familiar hand on her behind. She quickly removed the hand from her body and stood up. "I shall inform father of your decision," she seemed to grind out. Before leaving she hit the monk on the head but no where nearly as strong as she usually did.

"_Maybe I do stand a chance,_" Miroku thought as he watched her go. To him, she was very beautiful and he was happy that she had wanted him to join her village. In time he would start to push his luck further and not just pervert wise either. He only hoped that she felt the same about him.

  
**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's another chapter down. I hope you like the Miroku/Sango fluff. I enjoyed writing it. Well I'm really tired seeing as how its now 5 AM. I'm just going to quickly write a referral and then list the reviewers and go to bed:

**Once and Again** by _Jodie-chan_ storyid=1192383 This is one of my all time favorites. It isn't finished yet and can be a bit angsty but I think you'll really like it. The author hasn't updated since August but I'm really hoping she'll update again soon. I can't wait to read another chapter. enjoy.

Thanks again to my reviewers: Black Dice, Tsume Yamagata, Evil Pixi Stick Spork Goddess, Takerus Lost Angel, valou, Angel452, Sunbeam1, lilemmy, Defafaeth Mechqua, Lynns, Inushemeeko, and Sakume Nohara. Join me again next time for:

**Chapter 14: A Costly Mistake** - What happens when Kouga insults Inuyasha to Inutaisho? And how will the love triangle between IY/Kag/Kouga end? It will end but how? Come find out next chapter. 

[Also, the email list is still open to those who want me to notify them when I update. Just say that in your review and leave your email and I'll add you to the list.]


	15. Chapter 14 A Costly Mistake

Everyone look a new chapter. I don't have much to say about this chapter. Kouga and Ayame might be a little OOC but I really don't like Kouga and I there isn't many episodes of Ayame to base her on. I hope you enjoy the chapter. As I said Kouga's response is a bit based on another story I read and that story will be the referral below. 

**_When the Moron Comes_** - I usually find my fic to be a little rushed but it's nice to know that you think it's good. As for the cookie, I hope its chocolate chip. Lastly, I like your name.

**_SilentDark_** - I think you got it slightly confused. Kouga doesn't insult IY's father. Its just that Kouga insults IY to Inutaisho. Either way I'd like that weather forecast. I hope you still like the comedy in this chapter.

**_Angel452_** - I know there technically isn't a love triangle but in a wierd way there is.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Yes, Kouga is finally here so sit down and be quiet so the other readers can continue with the fic. j/k. 

**_Black Dice_** - Your a pyro too. cool. So am I. Kouga does get in the way but I'm not going to kill him. I'm not that mean but be sure the check the author note right after the responses. As for Sess and Rin, I'm not totally sure how much more I'm going to put them in the next few chapters. As for romance between them, if Sess would wait until she is older I would consider it okay. I'm not going to say what I'm going to do with them in this story cause that helps to give it away. While Sess won't really be showing up much more, he is mentioned.

**_Spring Angel_** - Well it's good to know I have another fan. I know what you mean about the reviewing. It took me a while before I starting reviewing for other people's stories but it is fun.

**_InuShemeeko_** - Well I'm glad you liked the S&M (okay I had to make that joke. I really mean Sango/Miroku but I just had to do it). You were the only person to specifically mention the San/Mir fluff. I take it that you really like San/Mir?

Well that's about it for responses. One last note before the disclaimer and the chapter. This chapter is practically the send off for Kouga. At this point I don't see him coming back at all. Unfortunately when I started this story I only booked Kouga a few times and now his lawyer says that via the contract he doesn't have to show up any more times. I've tried fight the lawyer but he's a pain in the ass. So Kouga might not be coming back in the story. If you don't believe me, check the after notes.

Disclaimer: As I said above, lawyers are a pain and according to mine, I don't own IY, okay?

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 14: A Costly Mistake  


Inutaisho looked around the courtyard. Last night's feast had gone well into the night. People had continued to tell stories just like old friends. It was about noon but not everyone was awake. Some were still resting from the previous night. He was glad knowing his son was happy. Inuyasha seemed to care deeply for the human miko from the future and he wished them the best. To live happy all they had to do is get over their shyness and admit their feelings for one another. He knew of the other problems that existed, he had heard Inuyasha talking to his mother the day before but Inutaisho knew that once they confessed their love that they would get over those problems without any trouble. As the old saying goes, love can overcome all. Just then Inutaisho caught a scent in the air. It seemed to belong to a wolf demon and was headed towards the castle. Inutaisho didn't know the scent but from his son's stories of their adventures he could figure who this new visitor was. He then thought to himself, "_Love can overcome all. Let's see how they overcome this obstacle. This should be quite interesting_."

It wasn't much longer before Kouga made his way into the castle. As he walked in, he looked around and saw Inutaisho standing there watching him. Kouga walked over to Inutaisho right away, "Is this your castle?"

"Yes, it is. You must be Kouga, I've heard about you. I'm am Inutaisho," he told his visitor.

Right away Kouga looked shocked and slightly scared. He quickly went down to one knee in front of Inutaisho. "I deeply apologize for intruding in your castle without your permission."

"It is alright. The door opened to you so you are welcome inside," Inutaisho replied.

"I am Kouga, leader of the Western Wolf tribe. I was young when you were Lord of the Western Lands. I had heard that you had died, I see now that this is false," Kouga told to taiyoukai. Kouga's face was always facing the ground never looking up.

"Can I ask what has brought you here to my home? And please look at me when you talk," Inutaisho asked.

Kouga looked up immediately. "I am looking for a lowly hanyou called Inuyasha. He is far beneath you and he is but a mutt amoung Inu-youkai. It is just that I have followed his scent here." Even though Inutaisho listened to Kouga insult his son, he couldn't help but laugh inside. He knew the wolf would soon be regretting those words when he fully realized the situation.

"Kouga, what are you pestering my father about?" Inuyasha called off from a distance.

Kouga was about to yell back when it hit him what Inuyasha had said. He then turned to Inutaisho, "Fa…Father?" Kouga had a look of pure terror on his face. He had just insulted a noble and to make it worse it was to Inuyasha's father. This could be big trouble for him. "I apologize, my lord. I hadn't known he was your son. I beg for mercy."

Inutaisho had to stifle his laugh. He knew this would happen once Kouga found out. He was a bit sorry at not telling him sooner but he also found some fun in it. That is why he decided to string the boy on a little more, "It is not I that you should be apologizing to."

Inuyasha had just arrived and watching in shock as Kouga, who was still on one knee, turn to him. "Forgive me, Inuyasha. I have insulted your honor not only before but just now to your father. I beg for mercy."

Kagome who had just finished with breakfast with Inuyasha when he told her that Kouga had arrived looked quite confused. She looked to Inuyasha for answers but he seemed as confused as her. She then turned to Inutaisho, "what is going on?"

Inutaisho looked to Inuyasha to see if he understood but found that Inuyasha was awaiting his answer as well. "Inuyasha, you know that humans have created laws to govern their own people. Demons don't really have many laws that are entirely agreed upon but there are a few. There is the most common survival of the fittest but there is another that all youkai adhere to. Nobility is treated with the utmost respect by lower youkai. I am a member of nobility and you being my son inherit that fact even if you are a hanyou. While other nobles may shun you, if you make you nobility known then lower demon's must respect you. Kouga has insulted you and that is a grave mistake. By Youkai law, you can kill him for such disrespect."

"That is why I ask you to spare my life," Kouga said almost begging. He then noticed that Kagome was there. "I also revoke my claim on Kagome. It is not my place to claim her."

Inuyasha looked at his father. "Something tells me there's some reason behind his last comment. You wanna continue your explanation?"

"It is common for lower youkai to fight for a mate in life. This might also be common among nobles but is not often. When a noble is searching for a mate, they might find one that they like in particular. In this instance, it happens to be Kagome," Inutaisho said as Kagome could only blush. "If a noble is looking to mate with a certain person, a lower youkai must not interfere. Once again Kouga has interfered and you can kill him for such."

Kagome seemed totally shocked by all of this. She had only thought before that the only thing that demon's respected were strength but it seemed she was wrong. She looked at Inuyasha who was still taking all this new information in. "Surely you aren't going to kill him, are you?" Kagome asked.

"Of course not," Inuyasha told her. Inuyasha looked down at Kouga but only growled. "Kouga, stand up. I don't like looking down to talk to you." Kouga stood up immediately as if his life depended on it, which he believed it did. "Listen Kouga, you didn't know before that Inutaisho was my father because I never said it before. Even though I didn't know all these rules about noble youkai, I never said anything because I don't like be treated special. I'd rather be treated normal. A day may come when I may kill you, but that won't be because it's my right or privilege. It would be because of some battle but it may never come to that. Now I do want you to leave Kagome alone but I want you to go back to treating me as you did before. Sure I don't like the dog-turd insults but that just gives me a reason to think of the day that I'll kill you in battle. And besides I'd rather be here bickering with you then you down on a knee begging me for mercy. Understand?"

"I do," Kouga said with a small bow.

Inuyasha only growled. "Do you understand, wimpy wolf?" Inuyasha asked throwing on the small insult.

Kouga realized what Inuyasha meant. "Yeah, I understand, dog-turd," Kouga said with a smile.

Inutaisho smiled at how his son had resolved the conflict. He then walked up to Kouga, "Now I'm sorry to hear about you problems with Kagome but from hearing my son's stories, I hear you already have a possible mate."

Kouga looked stumped for a bit when he remembered. "Ah yes, Ayame. I guess she'll be happy when she hears about this."

"Well I'm sure you can tell her when she arrives here in a few minutes," Inutaisho said. Kouga looked at him in surprise. "I smell that a female wolf demon is on her way here and she seems to be following your scent so I can only believe that this is her. That does remind me Kouga, why exactly are you here? You said you were looking for Inuyasha. What exactly for?"

Kouga quickly turned to Inuyasha. "I came to ask Inuyasha about something." Inuyasha looked at Kouga as to continue. "For some unknown reason, the members of my pack and those of the North tribe that had gone to Naraku's castle have suddenly returned. I am grateful but I am unsure as to how this occurred. I figured you might know something and when I tried to find you I realized that you had gone somewhere so I followed your scent here. Do you have any idea why this happened?"

"I think I know though I never expected it," Inuyasha said. "I made a wish on the Shikon Jewel. It was meant to include my friends but I guess in the back of my mind it included you as well."

"What exactly was the wish?" Kouga asked.

"I wished that everyone we cared about could come back to life. It brought Miroku, Shippo, Sango, and my parents back to life. Though it has gone farther than I expected. For instance, it brought back Sango's entire village and now it seems that it has brought back your pack as well," Inuyasha said.

"I see. Then even if you don't want to be treated as nobility I still own you my thanks," Kouga said seriously.

"I accept your thanks but as I said the wish wasn't meant to necessarily include you. It's probably because you helped us in the battle with Naraku that you were in my head when I made the wish."

Before Kouga could respond a small gust of wind blew threw the castle. Right before everyone stood Ayame. "I've finally found you, Kouga," she said. She then looked around to see Inuyasha, Kagome, and some other man she had never seen before. She first looked at Inuyasha, "I have met you before but," she said as she turned to Inutaisho, "who are you?"

"Ayame show respect!" Kouga yelled at her, "This is Inutaisho, Lord of the Western Lands and this is his castle."

Ayame turned to him in horror. She quickly dropped to one knee and started begging for forgiveness just as Kouga had before. Inuyasha just sighed, "This is getting annoying."

Inutaisho just looked at his new guest. "Don't worry. You are a friend of my son so you are welcome here. Now I must be going. I have things I have to attend to. Have a nice day," with that Inutaisho left.

"So what brings you here Ayame?" Kagome asked.

She looked at Kouga. "Word has reached the mountain of Naraku's defeat. I have hopes that Kouga remember the night of the moon's rainbow," she said as she looked at Kouga. "I still can't see Shikon shards but I'm hoping that you will still marry me."

Inuyasha gave a small laugh. "I knew you wouldn't be able to see Shikon shards," he said and Ayame started to get angry. "But it doesn't matter anymore, anyway."

"What do you mean?" Ayame said.

"There are no more Shikon shards," Inuyasha said as he then motioned to Kagome. Kagome brought out a full Shikon Jewel from around her neck. "When we defeated Naraku, the Shikon Jewel was completed but it's of no use anymore because we already made a wish from it." 

Kouga then looked at Ayame. "His wish brought back the members of my pack that had been killed by Kagura," Kouga said. "As for the night of the moon's rainbow, I slightly remember seeing something like that though I'm not sure about that promise." Kouga actually remember the night very well he just didn't want to come out and say it in front of everyone.

"Well, I'll help you remember it," Ayame said with high hopes. "But what about Kagome?" She didn't want to ask the question but she had to know.

"I have revoked my claim on Kagome," Kouga said. Kouga then turned to Inuyasha, "Well we better be going. See you later, dog face."

"See ya, wolf boy," Inuyasha replied. With that Kouga ran off.

Before Ayame could leave, Kagome told her really quick, "Be sure to keep with him. I think he likes you."

"I will," Ayame said with a smile. She turned and bowed, "thank you for everything." With that Ayame was gone obviously after Kouga.

"I hope everything goes okay with them," Kagome said. With that her and Inuyasha walked out of the courtyard in search of their friends.

_**~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&**_

  
Well as I said, this could be the end of Kouga's appearance. I don't really have him planned for anything else but who knows. My mind is quite random so I could end up including him later. As for the idea of Kouga's reaction to everything, I hadn't realized it was so close to the original. The only idea I had remember was that Kouga treated IY like royality. All the stuff about offering his life, I didn't remember. The particular chapter of the story is a few months old in my head. Here is the story I got it from:  


**To Bind a Soul**by _fire-goddess6 - _the particular chapter is chapter 20. Like I said I didn't originally realize I was getting so close to my inspiration but I decided not to change it cause I'm really lazy. sorry.

Well I have a deal for everyone. Unfortunately as i have it planned now, the next chapter will be short but it will have some really good fluff. The deal is - If I get 13 (that's my lucky number) reviews by the end of tomorrow. I will update with the next chapter by tomorrow. I can't wait to write this next chapter. It's going to be so fun. After the next chapter. Everyone will probably be setting off from the castle but I'll tell you this. IY and Kagome won't be going directly back to the well. There's one stop on the way. Well that's all the secrets I'm going to give away. Be sure to come next time for:

**Chapter 15: You Have to Do It Right**(Please get you minds out of the gutter, I don't mean it that way)

[and the email list will continue to be open until otherwise stated]


	16. Chapter 15 You Have to Do It Right

Well it seems everyone has come through. I got a total of 18 reviews for last chapter. Which means I busted my butt and got the chapter done. I really hope everyone likes it. I would love to make the same deal again with getting my story over the 200 mark but I'm not 100 % sure on the next chapter. I hope everyone likes the fluff.

**_b00kperson_** - technically I wasn't going to withhold IY, I was just saying that I'd update a day sooner. I'm actually quite happy with how much people like this story. I never expected it to get this many reviews. I wish you the best with your stories.

**_alaya_** - To me this is chapter 15. I know ff.net says 16 cause they count the prologue. To me that isn't a full chapter. So that's the reason.

**_Barbie Doll Slayer 19_** - I know I suck when it comes to grammar. I must say that I hate English. Not to mention, I care so much about my dear fans that I try to get the chapter out as quick as possible so I don't proofread. Besides I hate proofreading to begin with.

**_Emerald Dragon Hanyou_** - well sorry to hear about almost losing the story. Feel free to bookmark my story, or sign up for an account with ff.net and you have a favorites list, or you could ask me to add you to my email list and I'll let you know when I update and with a link to the chapter. I hope you do find this.

**_Kawaii Monkey Hanyou_** - I liked writing that line myself.

**_Bonnie_** - I know what it's like when a good story ends. I feel the same way. I'm not gonna want to see this story go but I can't go on forever. Don't worry though, this story is only about halfway done. There are plenty more surprises to come. As for going back to Kagome's time, all you have to do it wait a few more chapters to find out.

**_SilentDark_** - Sorry no rain as for getting Kouga's tail, check on eBay you never know what you'll find there. As I read your review I almost thought you were turning the news over to me "back to you, Bob" (I found this funny cause as I mentioned my name is Robert). Even if you didn't remember it was still fun. And as for the boxes, I know of them but IY is a long series and I'm too poor. But I'm glad you got one.

Well that's about all. I hope everyone likes this chapter. I do. If anyone is out there waiting for Action/Adventure, don't worry it's coming. If anyone thinks, I've ran out of things to surprise everyone with, just wait cause I have at least 2 more good things coming. One will be in about 2-3 chapters. The other will take longer. So don't worry, I haven't run out of steam yet. Well on with the show:

Disclaimer: It's almost 6AM, if I think I own IY I'm delusional.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 15: You Have to Do It Right  


Inuyasha walked out of the dining room. He had just finished his dinner. As he walked out he could see Kagome just wandering around. She seemed to be looking for something but she was lost. Inuyasha walked over to her. "Looking for something?"

Kagome turned around in surprise. "Oh, hi Inuyasha, I didn't see you coming," Kagome said. "I'm looking to go back to the West Garden. I really liked it and wanted to go back but I can't seem to find my way there. I can't really jump my way like you did so I'm trying to find the regular path."

Inuyasha just gave a small laugh, "You won't find it. My father originally built it and the East Garden so that it could be a special place for him and my mother. So the way there is hidden. It's harder when you're a human," Inuyasha said. As he said that he could see Kagome get angry thinking that he had insulted humans. "I'm not trying to be mean but as a human you have to make a winding way to the garden. As for a demon, you can do like I did and just jump over the walls and get there."

"Well if your father built it for only him and your mother, then we're not suppose to go there," Kagome said getting worried since they had already been there once.

"Did you forget what I told you?" Inuyasha asked. "My parents told me that I could only bring certain people there."

Kagome did remember him saying that. In fact, if she remembered correctly, he said people that he truly cared for. She looked and Inuyasha and noticed that he was a little tense. She decided to break the ice by just simply asking, "Well can you show me the human way to get there?"

Inuyasha just smiled at her, "Sure. Follow me." With that he led her through the castle once again. He led her from one small passage way behind a building to another. Kagome was trying her best to keep track of the way to get here but she was quickly losing her way. Just when she thought she couldn't keep track any more they were there. Inuyasha looked at her and could tell that she was a bit confused. "Don't worry. Whenever you want to come here just tell me and I'll bring you here."

Kagome smiled at his kindness. "Thank you, Inuyasha. You know, you've been acting real nice since we came here," Kagome said. "What's surprising is that, I haven't even fought with you once since being here. Why are you acting so nice?"

"What I can't act nice for a bit," Inuyasha said as the anger in his voice rose. He quickly took breath though and his anger subsided. He looked at Kagome with sincerity, "I guess it's this place. Outside of here I couldn't show weakness but inside these walls I feel safe. I can do what I want."

"That's really nice, Inuyasha, but you don't have to worry outside these walls. Maybe when you were younger you had to worry but now you're older, stronger, and you have friends that will stand by you," Kagome told him. Inuyasha seemed to nod in agreement with her. "Thank you for being so nice. You brought back everyone's parents. Even if you didn't want, you brought back Kouga's pack, which I'm sure was like family to him, and you also spared his life."

"As I said before, I'm not going to kill the wolf just because of my father's status in life. Sure there has been times I wanted to kill him but I'm not going to kill him just because demon law says he has to stand there and let me kill him. I not that much of a low-life," Inuyasha said.

"No, you're a really good person. I just hope that when we leave here you'll keep showing it," Kagome said.

"I'll try my best," Inuyasha said whole-heartedly. Kagome just smiled in return. "_She looks so beautiful with that smile_," Inuyasha thought.

"Hey look. The sun is setting," Kagome said. "I still can't get over how beautiful this is."

"Tomorrow morning, I'll take you to the East Garden for when the sun rises. I'm sure you'll love it," Inuyasha said.

"I've never been much of a morning person but I guess I could be one once in my life," Kagome said with a huge smile. "I'm sure it will be as beautiful as this."

"_But it still won't be as beautiful as you_," Inuyasha thought. "_I guess now is as good as ever to try_." While Kagome was staring out at the sunset, Inuyasha leaned in and gave her a small kiss on her cheek.

Kagome realized what he had done. He had kissed her, even if it was just a small peck on the cheek it was a kiss. Tons of questions started shooting through her head along with many emotions, shock, surprise, and love all at once. Through all that one odd questioned seemed to leak out, "Why?" She wasn't sure why she had asked that. It just came out.

Inuyasha backed up and looked at her. He seemed to take her question as an insult. "Because I felt like it!" Inuyasha all but practically yelled at her.

Kagome realized that he was angry at her because of her own stupid question. "You shouldn't kiss someone like that," Kagome said.

"_Why cause it's so horrible_," Inuyasha thought to himself along with other rejections. He turned to see Kagome walking towards him. He was about to voice his ideas of what she would say but Kagome spoke first.

"You have to do it the right way," as Kagome said that she leaned up and kissed him full on the lips. Kagome didn't totally know why she did it but she just wanted to and it felt so right. Inuyasha was a little tense. He had been expecting some horrible insult to his pride instead she shocked him but fully kissing him. Rather than seem ungrateful, Inuyasha loosened up and melted with the kiss. He had wanted to kiss her but he was afraid of her response, it seemed he had nothing to really fear.

They seemed to kiss forever. Once they finally quit and looked around the sun had fully gone down. They didn't know what to say to each other. When the silence was finally broken it was Kagome who spoke first, "If this is what sunset is like, I really can't wait for sunrise tomorrow." They both gave a small laugh but kept on a loving smile.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

  
Well that's it. I know they haven't said the words, "I love you," yet but its coming. I'm not totally sure yet when they'll say it but I have an idea. I don't think I'm going to write a scene for the next morning. As I said before, I'm not even sure what the next chapter is going to be about. I'm thinking it be about them packing up to go but I'm also thinking I want to drag out this visit 1 last chapter. We'll see what I decide. Well here's my newest referral:

  
**_ You're Not Alone_** by _Leeta_ storyid=1263907 While this is in my mind slightly darker than my usual. I found myself liking this story very much. This isn't a dark tone story, just more death in it than I had read before. Was working on a sequel as well but that disappeared from ff.net.

  
Well I have to thank my reviewers who made this possible: Sakume Nohara, chaos-bringer23, SilentDark, Bonnie, Angel452, alie, Defafaeth Mechqua, Takerus Lost Angel, kawaii monkey hanyou, Alexendra, emerald dragon hanyou, Barbie doll Slayer, Sango13, Silver Kitsune, NR, ayala, and b00kperson. Thanks all of you.


	17. Chapter 16 A Motherly Talk

Well everyone here is yet another chapter of my great story and I once again find myself doing this at 3 AM. I'm really screwed up. Actually I really love you guys and wanted to get this chapter out to ya. I wasn't totally sure what I wanted to do in this chapter and it wasn't helping that my mind was in a dark sort of mindset. Nothing bad in my life don't worry it was just the IY fics I read that were updated seem to be at a evil part whether its Kikyo interfering with the IY/Kag relationship or something truly bad but it just messed with my ideas for this story. Luckily I got out of that and was able to write this chapter. I hope you like it but I have a feeling some of you will hate me by the end. But just this note, I have planned far ahead and if you hate me at the end of this chapter then a little bit later you'll be calling for my death. lol So enjoy.

**_SilentDark_** - Well their feelings are pretty much sorted out its just them coming out and saying it. I'll be saying this at the end of the chapter but I'll say it here anyway, I'm pretty sure I've decided when and where they will admit their feelings for one another. That's only about 3-4 chapters down the line if you must know. Sorry that the tail wasn't on eBay, you'll just have to check back every now and then. As for the amount of IY episodes, according to TVTome.com there are 140 out in Japan. Last time I check they've only subbed up to 135. You're a Sess fan so you might like this little info. If you can download episodes 134 and 135. The title is "The Woman Who Loved Sesshomaru." (Parts 1&2 respectively). I found this quite interesting so I downloaded it, now if only I'd sit down and watch it. I've seen about half so far.

**_Josh Potter_** - I am well aware of the demon instincts aspect but I'm not quite sure if I'll use it and if I do I'm unsure about how'll I'll use them. Only time will tell. 

**_Tessie-fanfic_** - that's so good to hear. As for me stopping, I don't see that anytime soon. This story will come to an end eventually but my writing will not. I've been into writing fanfics for about the last 3 years. This is my first IY fanfic though.

**_Burnsbabe_** - I wouldn't call you stupid but maybe impatient. lol. But as you and many other people asked, the next chapter is here.

**_KenshinOtaku_** - About my sleeping, you see the thing is, I don't usually write during the day. Why? Who knows, I'm just a little backwards like that but I've always enjoyed the night much better. (no I'm not a vampire but that is a topic of another story idea I have :) ) As for when I have time to sleep, thanks to me being a college student yet, I don't have school until Jan. 12th so I sleep in every day til almost 2 pm. As for the japanese, I know only a small bit but I do know how to say Ja ne. So ja ne. 

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Yes a really kiss, I liked that too. The sunset thing is real nice for fanfics, if only I could do that in real life. But to do that I'd need to get a girlfriend. Whoops to much personal info there. BTW, what does Bonne Annee mean? Is that happy new years in another language? I myself celebrated bringing in the new year by reading fanfics online and writing my own.

**_Inushemeeko_** - Yep, Kag kissed IY. I like to keep you readers on your toes with surprises and just wait many more surprises are coming. And I loved having Kouga beg for mercy cause I always hated that way he talked to Kagome. So I got a little payback. lol.

**_Miss Queen of the World_** - I'm glad you liked the story. I was at first worried that people wouldn't like the plot because it seemed a little too goody-goody (as in bringing everyone back to life and such). As for continuing this forever, I don't necessarily have that planned. I do have an ending in sight but if I do get more ideas to add on I might go with it. 

Well as I final note I will say that there is a slight bit of fluff here, I'm just worried that you guys and girls might not like me when your finished with this chapter.

Disclaimer: I can't say that I own IY but I do own the plot. So that's close enough for now.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 16: A Motherly Talk

It had been almost a week since Kagome and Inuyasha had kissed. The next morning had been spectacular. They had watched the sun rise but shortly after that, they only cared about each other. They had spent the next week talking and spending time with each other. Inuyasha wanted to know as much about her time as possible since he would be spending some time with her. Many of the things she had told him about, he had already seen but had never really known much about them such as cars. Before he wasn't quite sure if those had been demons, they made weird noise but didn't seem to have the scent of a demon. Inuyasha had surprised Kagome even by telling her that her time was full of demons but they seemed to be hiding and getting along well with humans. Inuyasha wasn't sure if he could see Sesshomaru living like that with all the humans around. It could be possible see as Sesshomaru would easily live to Kagome's time and far beyond it. After only a few days, Sesshomaru had left the castle with only saying farewell to his father. Once during his visit, he talked with Inuyasha for a little bit but not too long.

Kagome was walking around the castle by herself. Inuyasha was spending some time with his father. Kagome knew that the day after next they would be departing from the castle. They had been there for almost a month and she really liked the place. Inuyasha had told her that the reason for staying an extra few days was because this night would be the night of the new moon.

"Kagome," a voice called out. Kagome snapped out of her thoughts to see Inuyasha's mother in one of the gardens that Kagome had been passing.

"Good afternoon," Kagome greeted her. [I'd use a nicer greeting but I don't know IY's mother's name and I'd rather not make up a lame name for her.]

Inuyasha's mother put down her gardening tools with which she had been tending to the garden and walked over to Kagome. "Is it okay if I have a talk with you?"

"Sure," Kagome said as she took a seat on a small bench in front of the garden.

Inuyasha's mother joined Kagome on the bench. "I can tell you and my son are getting along really good," she said with a wide smile. Kagome blushed a little at this, "don't be embarrassed. I think you two make a great couple." Kagome couldn't say anything but became even redder. "What I wanted to talk to you about was that he told me he'd be spending some time in your era."

"Yes, he is," Kagome replied.

"Now from what I've learned from him, your era doesn't know much about demons. I don't think you'd be able to constantly hide his ears from everyone with a simple hat and even if you could people might notice that he doesn't have regular human ears. I don't think you want to lock him up in your house all day, do you?"

"No, not at all," Kagome quickly responded. "I guess, I hadn't thought about this that much." Kagome frowned and looked to the ground. She was so looking forward to Inuyasha coming to her time and now it seemed impossible.

"Don't get discouraged. This can still work out," she told Kagome and her spirits seemed to lift. "I can teach you a miko spell that would help disguise him. I would have liked to do this when Inuyasha was younger so that he would have been accepted by other people but I couldn't. This spell requires two things. First, you have to be a powerful enough miko. I would have been powerful enough to cast it at first but not enough to keep it up. You however are very powerful and could easily do this with it barely affecting your powers. Secondly, you need an item that can be easily enchanted and hold that enchantment. Inuyasha already has this. You can easily cast it on his necklace. The only downside to this is that your subduing spell might no longer work. If you want to keep that, you'll have to find a different item that he could wear at all times."

"Actually, I think it would be best if the subduing spell was no more," Kagome said. "It was originally put on him so I could protect myself from him since he had attacked me. I don't think it's really necessary anymore, not to mention I won't have to worry about saying the word sit back in my time. I think my friends would find it weird if when I said it, Inuyasha suddenly hit the ground." Kagome laughed a little at this as did Inuyasha's mother.

"That's good to know. But there is one danger. If Inuyasha should get made enough, his demon energy might start to overtake the spell and therefore the disguise would fail. This doesn't mean he'd become full demon just that anyone around him would see him for who he truly is."

"I should tell Inuyasha about this," Kagome said as she motioned to get up from the bench.

"No need," Inuyasha's mother responded and stopped Kagome from leaving. "I've already informed him of this. If it's okay with you, I'd like to start teaching you the spell. Hopefully, you'll have learned it before you leave here." Kagome agreed and started learning the spell right away.

  
*****

Later that night Kagome and Inuyasha sat once again in the Sunset Garden. They had come to this place every night because they loved it so much. It was past sunset and Inuyasha was now human as they both sat side by side leaning against each other and laying back on the sakura tree. Inuyasha looked Kagome in the eye as he spoke to her, "Kagome, I just wanted to tell you that I lo…" Inuyasha's proclamation had been stopped by Kagome placing a finger on his lips.

"Don't say it, Inuyasha," Kagome said. Inuyasha seemed slightly hurt at what Kagome was telling him and unknown to him Kagome was hurt as well. "I know what you want to say and I so much want to hear it but you've always said that your human side is weaker emotionally than your hanyou side. I want to make sure that when you tell me, you are fully ready. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I do," Inuyasha replied. He was slightly hurt that he couldn't tell her yet but he understood what she said and if he had to wait a little longer to tell her that would be fine by him. His feelings for her would always be the same. As a human, hanyou, or demon he would always love her.

  
**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

As I said above, they have sorted out their feelings amongst themselves. It's just getting them to say it. I know you guys might not like that Kagome cut him off but I thought with all the sort of romantic things I mentioned in the beginning that they had done that they should say it soon. They will admit their feelings soon. Not next chapter but soon. I have a really good surprise coming in the next two chapters so I hope you like them. Well now its referral time:

**_Beggars Can't Be Choosers_** by _Kitten Kisses_. storyid=1202489

Well I do have to thank the people who reviewed: inuyashaluver, inuyasha, lunar_youkai, SilentDark, Josh Potter, tessie-fanfic, inu-boo, silver kitsune, julia, Burnsbabe, Phoenix Archangel, Hanyou-Girl25, Sakume Nohara, KenshinOtaku, Takerus Lost Angel, sailorpsychosis, great story, Inushemeeko, Miss Queen of the World, anime mistress419, Ryguy5387, Alexandra, Defafaeth Mechqua, whitemiko, and Angel452.

Well that's all for this chapter come back next time for:

  
**Chapter 17: A Small Detour**


	18. Chapter 17 A Small Detour

Well welcome again to my great story. I'm glad you came back. I must say that I'm happy with how many people are enjoying this story. Surprisingly I'm really enjoying it too. Well there will be some more important announcements after the responses so if your taking the time to read this be sure to read that note. Now for the responses which this batch are going to be fun:

**_ Tsukinoko1_** - I do know that IY turns human during the new moon but for some reason I accidentally typed full moon. Thanks for the heads up though and that error has been corrected. Thanks for the heads up on all the other info as well. I am aware of the 3rd IY movie but I didn't know it took a break from the IY/Kag relationship. I did know that it gave a lot of IY's family background. Such as his mother's name, Izayoi, which I mention in the later note and in this story. Do you actually live in Japan? That's got to be cool to be able to go see the new IY movie. If you could after seeing it, please fill me in on what happens. You don't have to but I'd appreciate it.

**_wsantelm_** - Thank you for your praise. As for Kouga, had the circumstances been the same he might have put up a fight for Kagome but remember IY is nobility and one of the conditions that allowed him to continue living was that he let Kagome go. Even with Kouga being stubborn, IY is nobility as so he did as he was told.

**_Ryngrl5_** - I'm glad you liked that Kagome stopped IY's confession of love. I thought I'd have people after my head for that.

**_ demonic hanyou_** - if you liked the cliff hangers so far just wait. I've got at least 2 more good ones coming your way if not more. I can't blame you for hating Hobo/Homo/Hojo cause I hate him as well. As for IY getting pissed of just wait and see. They'll be in Kag's time in about 3 chapters. That's when the fun starts. As for finding IY tapes/DVDs, you can look at just about any online store such as Amazon but if you want a store you can go to find your local Best Buy or FYE. FYE usually doesn't have a very good stock and can be a bit pricy but are usually easier to find. They're the closest to my house (20 minutes) otherwise I have to travel almost an hour to Best Buy.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - I speak a little French, "your an ass bite, pardon my french" (that's a quote from a Celebrity Jeopardy from Saturday Night Live. I love those skits.) That quote is nothing personal, I just remembered the skit and I wanted to quote it. :) Actually though about the only French I know is Bonjour. I actually know like one other saying but I can't spell it out so I won't even try.

**_SilentDark_** - I must say I always like responding to your reviews. Now if you want to find episodes of IY go to www anime-kraze net (replace spaces with periods, this is the only way ff.net will allow me to display it) or you could go to www saiyaman info (yes that should be .info, this one comes out with them faster but I can't vouch for the accuracy of the dubs, not sure yet). To download from either of these sites you need bit torrent. If you're not sure about this either check on their web page or ask me. As for the owner of Sesshomaru's tail, there's two people you might want to look up. One is Rumiko Takahashi, who knows she could be hiding it somewhere, or you could try asking Sesshomaru directly, though if he has it I think he's a little attached to it. Good luck.

**_Flare4ever_** - Well I'm glad you're so happy. Yes, I do enjoy writing about IY, in fact, I like writing fiction overall. Unfortunately that didn't help in English for writing research papers *shivers.* I must say I mainly only read IY fanfics even though IY is my second favorite anime. My first is Vandread but I like it so much that I'm practically a purist and believe nothing could live up to the series (I'm crazy I know). As for Kagome's time, the second half of my story will be based there and things will be a little different. Where as the first half was a sort of Drama/Romance, the second half will be more Action/Adventure/Romance. If you liked the surprises so far though I got more coming. As for Sango/Miroku as it's planned now, they're going to be taking a back seat in the second half, they will be there though. I'm going to think about it more and hopefully come up with some ideas so as to show them more. 

**_Sango13_** - Though the other responses are larger, I liked your review the best so far. I understand what you're asking about with guys writing Act/Adv while girls write romance. I'm going to be honest. As I look at it, I'm a bit more of a sensitive guy. I'm not saying your thinking this but who knows what people will think, so I'm going to clear this up as well, I AM NOT GAY. Okay I feel better now :) Now to get back to the matter at hand. I do enjoy writing and reading a love story but I usually like some Action in there. That's why if you happen to read the response for Flare4ever, as I said the second half of this story will start to become a Action/Adventure/Romance story. Well if you have any more questions to ask, feel free. I liked answering yours and I don't mind answering more.

**_BlackDice_** - I did a small search and there are 3 artists that did a song with that line in it. One was Whitney Huston, Dolly Parton, and Leann Rimes. As for the explanation about he spell I did that so people couldn't get technical and ask why IY's mother hadn't cast the spell. I like to tie up loose ends like that. If you happen to see any just let me know.

**_DarkInuyasha_** - You asked quite a bit of questions so here goes: I don't know the exact amount of chapters and even if I did they'd be subject to change. I'd say we just passed the halfway point a couple of chapters ago. As for a lemon, if I do one it won't be posted directly on ff.net because I don't want my story kicked off. Believe it or not though I got my start writing fanfics by writing lemons so it's not new to me. I'm not one for a sad ending. That is apparent in the fact that I brought all the people back to life but there will be some twists along the way. As for the end couples, in the summary its stated that there will be IY/Kag and San/Mir as for the others that's all out in the open and for you to find out.  


Okay I've managed to finish all responses. It took me long enough. BTW, it is right now. 6:30 AM and I haven't gotten any sleep but then again I didn't plan to. I knew this would take me a while seeing as how I started this chapter at 2 AM. But as I said I love you guys so its worth it. Anyway other important announcement so **EVERYONE LISTEN UP** as of this point in the story, I have learned that Inuyasha's mother's name is Izayoi, this coming from the third movie. I had thought this to be true before but I needed to make sure. So from now on, I will refer to her as Izayoi. I'm also gonna backtrack and change things from previous chapters to this as well. Well now on with the show.

Disclaimer: It may be 6:30 in the morning and me with no sleep but I am in my right mind and I know that I don't own Inuyasha. 

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 17: A Small Detour

Inuyasha slowly got out of the hot spring even though he didn't want to. Today he would be leaving his home once again. Part of him didn't want to leave but he knew he wasn't a kid anymore. He couldn't live at home with his parents. Ironic enough though, he was headed to Kagome's time to live with her mom. He didn't care though cause he would be with Kagome. He would miss his parents but now they're alive again so he would be able to come visit them. 

As he continued to think, Inuyasha made his way to one of the gardens that was his mother's favorite. As he got there he saw Kagome there with her. She seemed to be training up until the last moment. It seemed Kagome and his mother got along very well. Inuyasha could only sit back and smile as he watched them without there notice. It was another 5 minutes before they stopped their training. "Do you think you understand the spell well enough?" Izayoi asked.

"Yes. Thanks to your help, I think I can do it with no problem," Kagome said. "Well I better be going. Inuyasha and I are supposed to be leaving today and I'm sure he's getting angry waiting for me."

"On the contrary," she responded, "Inuyasha is waiting patiently. You can come out Inuyasha I know you are there."

Inuyasha walked out from the corner from where he'd been watching them. "You would know I was here with your miko senses," Inuyasha said.

"It doesn't matter if I'm a miko or not. You're my son and I'd know it was you," she said as she looked at Inuyasha with a smile. 

Kagome then looked at Inuyasha. "Do you want me to try the spell out now?" she asked him.

"No, that's not necessary. You can try it out when we get to Kaede's village that way you can save your energy. Also we'll probably get attacked less on our way back if people notice a hanyou rather than a regular human," Inuyasha replied.

"Okay well I'll get my stuff and see if Sango and Miroku are ready to go. We'll meet you at in the main courtyard," Kagome said as she ran off.

Once Kagome was gone, Izayoi turned to him, "I'm proud of you son. Not only have you done many great things and helped many people but you've also found a wonderful girlfriend."

Inuyasha quickly blushed but replied, "She's not my girlfriend," and then whispered under his breath, "yet."

"She will be soon enough, so don't worry," she replied as Inuyasha face just showed some confusion. "You can go ahead and whisper all you like but remember, I'm your mother so I know what you're thinking," she just smiled as she walked away from her son.

*****

15 minutes later, the group minus Shippo, who had left with his parents earlier in the week, stood in the main courtyard saying their goodbyes to their hosts. "Thank you very much for your gracious hospitality," Sango told them. Miroku thanked them as well.

"Thank you very much for your help," Kagome said as she looked to Izayoi.

"It was no trouble at all. I enjoyed teaching you. Next time I see you I'll teach you some more," she replied.

Kagome then looked to Inutaisho, "Thank you very much for everything though I was wondering if I could ask you one question?"

"Even though you just asked a question go ahead," Inutaisho responded with a small laugh.

"Well it's just that both Inuyasha and Sesshomaru have long hair while you have short hair. I was just wondering why?" Kagome asked. She was a little embarrassed that she asked such a personal question [yes if you remember from when Inutaisho when he first showed up, I mentioned he had short hair. If you happen to see the previews for IY: the 3rd movie, he has long hair.]

Inutaisho just gave a small laugh as he noticed Kagome's embarrassment, "It's okay. I don't mind telling you. I actually did have long hair even after I was revived but you see Izayoi has been bugging me for a while to cut it and so I decided to be nice and cut it. I don't mind though. It should fully grow back in about a month."

"I think you look just fine, dear," Izayoi told her husband. 

The group could only give a small laugh as they watch the couple argue. Inuyasha though ended the fun with a loud cough. He was next to talk to his parents. He first went up and gave his mother a hug, "I'm sorry I only stayed a month."

"Don't worry. You just be sure to take care of Kagome," Izayoi said that only he would hear. "I'll miss you so you be sure to visit. You can't make the excuse that I'm dead anymore." she gave a small laugh.

Inuyasha then walked to his father. "It was good to see you again son," Inutaisho said. "You've made me proud. You've become quite a man."

"Thank you father," Inuyasha said. He didn't remember his father when he was young so it was good to hear praise from him.

"Like you mother said, come visit us. Just remember in a little bit we're going to take a trip around Japan to see how much it has changed. I'd say it will take us about a year but it'll be fun. If everything is as I remember it will stop in Musashi village in a couple of months so be sure to drop by while we are there."

"Okay, I will. Feel free to scare Kaede a bit though," Inuyasha said with a smile.

"Inuyasha! Don't be mean to Kaede," Kagome yelled at him.

"Feh, whatever," Inuyasha said in a low tone. "Well I guess I will see you in a few months."

"Enjoy your trip," he replied. "And be sure to take care of Kagome."

"I will," Inuyasha said as he faced the ground and blushed a little. With that the group set off on their journey. 

Soon after they had left the castle, Kagome decided to talk about their plans, "So we're," she said mean her and Inuyasha, "are going to go with Miroku and Sango until our paths separate, right?"

Sango was about to confirm what Kagome had said when Inuyasha spoke first, "No, we're not."

"Huh? Then what are we going to do?" Kagome asked.

"We're going to go with them to Sango's village," Inuyasha said.

"But isn't that out of the way?" Kagome asked though she had no real problem with it.

"Yes it is," Inuyasha said getting tired of all the questions though he knew what one would come next.

"So why this sudden detour?" Kagome asked.

"I don't know," Inuyasha said honestly. "For some reason, I've had this feeling that we should go there for a while now. Don't ask me why or how cause I don't know. I just have. So to get rid of it, I figured I might as well find out why besides don't you want to spend more time with your friends?"

"I didn't mean it like that Inuyasha," Kagome said with a slight bit of anger. She then looked to Sango, "I'd love to spend more time with you guys. Not to mention, we'll get to see what you village looks like."

"Yeah, this time it won't be in ruins but it might not be totally rebuilt yet," Sango said.

"Well we'll be sure to give them a helping hand," Miroku said. Sango couldn't help but feel happy that Miroku was still with her and that he'd be living in the village with her. Now if only she could come out and admit her feelings to him. Little did she know but Miroku was feeling the same way.  


**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that brings another chapter to a close. I hope you enjoyed it. I have a question to ask of everyone. This will not bear on the story but I'm just wondering:

**Who do you prefer to be paired with Sesshomaru?**

Let me know and next chapter, I'll tell you who it is that I prefer. As I said your answers will not affect this story but they will be appreciated. Well next chapter will be a slight cliff hanger, not a big one so don't get too worried. The next 2 chapters have a few surprises. 4 chapters down the road IY and Kag will reach modern time and then the fun begins. After a couple of chapters in modern time, things will start to get interesting as we get to the Action/Adventure part. An original character or two will show up and who knows what part they'll pay. Friend or foe? wait and see. Now for my referral, which I'm going to make 2 since they are similar:

**_Since then_** by _ceramicprincess_ storyid=1218028 This is a story I just re-found. I lost track of it after a while. It's slightly different than my usual referrals but its an excellent story that will tug at your heart strings. One chapter in this story so far contains lemon content so beware. I hope you enjoy it.

**_A Love Sonnet_** by _Zephor_ storyid=1280961 This story is quite similar with the same main characters but gets to the point a bit quicker and leaves you with some questions at the beginning. It is another great story. This one like 'Since then' hasn't been updated in a bit but I can wait cause they are worth it. This doesn't have any lemon content. Enjoy.

Now I'd like to thank my great reviewers: Angel 452, Sakume Nohara, Inushemeeko, DarkInuyasha, BlackDice, Defafaeth Mechqua, an angel's heart, Sango13, Gemini, Phoenix Archangel, Ryguy, Burnsybabe, demonic honyou6, Flare4ever, SilentDark, Takerus Lost Angel, xo-Kagome-ox, M+M, Ryngrl5, wsantelm, animemistress419, chinta, Tsukinoko1, and kawakii monkey hanyou.

Well I hope everyone's happy. If your happy then that means you'll either stay or come back for the next chapter:

**Chapter 18: A Long Battle's End**


	19. Chapter 18 A Long Battle's End

Well welcome back once again. I'd like to thank everyone that answered my little question about Sess in the last chapter. I bet everyone is waiting to find out who is my favorite. Well I'm not going to tell you. Just kidding. :) Before I say who it is I'd like to say who most people prefer. Most people seemed to prefer: Rin. Next in line was Kagura. And some people even thought that he should continue to live out a lonely life by himself. Now what you all been waiting for, I like Sess to be paired with (drum roll please) ................ Kag......Kagura (not Kagome!!). I like it when Kagura is paired with Sess but I'm also a fan of Rin and Sess. Now to those people who said that Rin shouldn't be paired with Sess (and I mean the people that just came out and said it) of course you'd have to wait until Rin is older. I would hate it if Rin was put together with Sess when she's still a kid (he'd be a pedophile and that is just sick). Well as I said, you votes didn't have any say on this story. I just wanted to know what everyone preferred. As to what I'll do in my story you'll have to wait and see.

**_Black Dice _**- Yes you are right Kagura is still alive so I could pair her with Sess. Or I could have left her alive for some other sinster reason or maybe just because I felt bad for her. You'll have to wait and see. If you liked the info on Inuyasha's parents check the note before the story begins for a little on Inuyasha.

**_SilentDark_** - Yes I'd say you are obsessed with Sess. If you do write a fic about yourself and Sess I wish you the best. I think it'd definitely be under Humor. Yes I do believe that IY is acting a little different but as you'll see in this chapter and the next it wasn't totally him but IY is starting to change a bit (for the better). I hope you like it though.

**_Sango13_** - I'm glad you realize that there are some romantic type guys out there. Unfortunately there's not many. I'm a dying breed. lol. Unfortunately all my friends seem to be the violent type. I have 2 friends that have definite anger issues. If you happen to be searching for a romantic type of guy, good luck. Lastly I must say that I like how you add the number 13 to the end of your name. 13 is my favorite number. :)

**_Kawaii Monkey Hanyou & TotalChaos1_** - I'm a little confused with the Musashi/Edo thing as well. I am aware of the fact that Edo was Tokyo in the past but I looked it up online and it says that the village is Musashi. Maybe Edo is the entire area while Musashi is just that village. I have no clue but for now I'll stick with Musashi even though it's harder to spell.

**_Ryguy_** - At this point, I'm just gather the info I can about the third movie. Be sure to check the note right before the start of the chapter for some info.

**_wsantelm_** - When you mention the elder miko, which I believe you are referring to Midoriko. You mentioned that she's Kagome and Kikyo's reincarnation. It should be the other way around. They are her reincarnation. I must ask though, has this ever been said in the series? Especially with Midoriko's soul in the Shikon jewel how could she be reincarnated? As for Sess, if you think he should die a horrible death then don't tell that to SilentDark. She loves the guy though I'd love to see you two debate the topic. I must say I don't hate the guy, I only totally hate Kikyo and she should die a nasty horrible death.

Well just some final words before, I start the chapter. This is for anyone who wants some info on the 3rd IY movie. As I've found out, in the movie it says that IY is actually over 200 years old ( by demon standards) but 15 years old (human-wise). Now that is quite interesting. I found a site that has a small summary of the IY movie and they say in just a little bit they will have a bigger and better one. They also have a link to some really good screenshots. Here is the link (ff.net doesn't allow me to post a direct link): www (dot) peko-peko (dot) net (slash) inuyasha (slash) movies (dot) htm. Well I hope everyone enjoys it. If you want a little more info on the movie _Inuyasha Loves Kagome 4391_ was kind enough to add a summary in her story: **Half Demon Prep's and Punk Rock Miko's** in chapter 25: The Dance. That has a more detailed summary. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. I don't even own Sesshomaru but if I did I'd donate him to SilentDark so as to calm her obsession. lol. 

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 18: A Long Battle's End  


It took them 2 whole days but they finally made it Sango's village. They almost didn't recognize it. From the outside, you couldn't tell that just a little while ago it had been in ruins. When they had arrived they were greeted by Sango's father as well as many of the villagers. Many of them welcomed Sango home while her father spoke to Inuyasha. "It is good to see you. I had expected to see Sango and Miroku but it is an added bonus that you and Kagome have come," He said and then spoke to all four. "Follow me. I'm sure you are hungry from your trip. We were just about to sit down and have dinner."

Inside the village wasn't totally rebuilt. Many homes were still in the process of being either fixed or rebuilt. Everyone welcomed their new visitors even Inuyasha. Some even offered their thanks to him for beating Naraku and bringing them back. Even though he liked their thanks he still wasn't totally used to it so he didn't pay much attention to it. Sango's house was one of the lucky houses that were fully fixed. Everyone sat down in the house and ate the good food that was offered. "So what brings you here to our village?" Sango's father asked during the meal.

"I know I didn't speak of it before at my father's house but ever since I made that wish, I've had a sort urge to visit to come here. At first it was just small but the longer I waited the bigger it got. So once we left the castle I decided that we should come here so I could find out what's going on."

"Do you know where this urge is coming from?" Sango's father asked. "Did it have anything to do with your wish?"

"Well I know I didn't wish to have some sort of urge but I have no clue why I have it," Inuyasha said.

Miroku spoke up then, "So now that you are here, Inuyasha. What has happened to this urge?"

"Unfortunately, it's still there," he replied. "But now that I'm here, I feel like it's localized on one spot pulling me directly towards it. Before I felt like it was pulling me to the entire village, now I feel as if it's drawing me to one particular spot though I'm not sure where."

"After we are done eating, I will help you all I can," Sango's father replied. "Afterwards though, you are welcome to spend the night. The only thing is that we have only one guest room. It should be big enough for both you and Kagome. As you for Miroku," he said as he turned to Miroku, "with all the building in the village, we were able to add an extra room onto the house so you have a place to stay."

"Thank you very much, sir," Miroku said as he bowed.

"Don't thank me. It was no trouble at all," he replied. "Sango will be able to show you to your room. It was built right next to hers." Sango and Miroku blushed a little at this.

Kagome looked at Sango's father with a small smirk on her face. He seemed to return it with a smile. "_He's helping to set them up_," Kagome thought happily to herself. "_I just hope that Miroku doesn't get any perverted thoughts at night_."

*****

After dinner the group and even Sango's father followed Inuyasha as he continued to follow his urge. "I should have seen it coming," Kagome said. Everyone was a little surprised at where Inuyasha had led them – Midoriko's Cave. "The place where it all began," Kagome said.

"Well we're not learning anything by standing here now are we," Inuyasha said. "Let's go in." Inuyasha slowly walked in, a little afraid that the barrier would reject him. Luckily everyone made it through the barrier with no problems. They carefully walked into the cave until they reached the point where Midoriko was. Everything was still the same as before. 

"Well we're here. What now?" Sango asked no one in particular.

No one really knew what they should do but Inuyasha had yet another urge. "Kagome let me see the jewel," he told her.

Kagome wasn't really sure but she trusted Inuyasha. She slowly took it from around her neck and handed it to him. "Be careful, you remember what happened last time a part of the jewel was in here." Inuyasha nodded in response.

"What happened?" Sango's father asked.

"Myouga brought a shard of the jewel inside the cave and some of the demon spirits were resurrected," Sango said. Sango looked at Inuyasha who was just looking over the jewel, "What are you going to do with it?"

"I don't really know why," Inuyasha said as he removed the chain that allowed Kagome to wear it. He then proceeded to toss the jewel into the hole in Midoriko's chest.

Everyone gasped at what he had done. "Are you sure about this, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked. Before he could answer the Shikon no Tama started to glow. Everyone watched as it seemed to melt and then expand to fill the hole in Midoriko's chest. Suddenly the ground started to shake. They jumped back and stood ready for an attack at any moment.

"I'm not sure if that was a good thing to do, Inuyasha," Sango's father said. The ground continued to shake but everyone's attention was elsewhere. They watched as it seemed Midoriko and the demon around her came to life. They continued to watch as Midoriko jumped up away from the demon. The demon was quick to follow her though. It didn't seem to matter much to her as she dodged it jaws and used its own momentum against it. She brought her sword down through the demon slicing it cleanly in half. After being cut in half, the demon seemed to just disintegrate in front of them. Everyone watched as Midoriko easily landed on the floor of the cave. 

After looking around, Midoriko walked over to the group. She looked at Inuyasha and smiled. "Thank you. My long battle with that demon is finally over."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's it for this chapter. I know its a little short but I wanted to leave you with this cliffy. You'll probably be hating me right now but I love to use cliffhangers. Hey, at least you aren't calling for my death yet and if you are wait until later. I know you'll want my head then. I know I keep telling you people that but I love to elude to things in the future. Well if you are thinking of killing me, don't or else you'll never get the answers to all your questions. :) I have power over you all. ha ha ha *goes on a crazy rant for 5 minutes* Okay, I'm back. See what lack of sleep is doing to me. Well now its time for a referral and to keep with what I said before about how I like Sess/Kagura fics I think I'll suggest a new one that I really like:  


**Call Me Tomorrow** by _TailFluffGirl_ storyid=1572507 It has slight adult themes but its really good. I got hooked after only 2 chapters. 

  
Well before I go I have to thank everyone that reviewed: Alexandra, KittyDemon16, CaribMiko03, Black Dice, Ryngrl5, badgerwolf, Flare4ever, exsanguination, Darkbahamut, Inu the Stampede, Jessi, SilentDark, Refrain of Death, miko-destiny, AG_luna, Kourtney1617, Sailor Mini Venus, Katelyn, demonic honyou, Defafaeth Mechqua, Aeris219, PurpleRoses, Sakume Nohara, Sango13, trevor, Silver Warrior, Weirdo's Rule, Hanyou-Girl25, Sarena, Kawaii Monkey Hanyou, xo-Kagome-ox, TotalChaos1, Miss Queen of the World, Ryguy5387, wsantelm, kolohe, animemistress419, KellyChan85, and Angel452. This list just keeps getting longer huh? Well that's a good thing. Even though I'm not sure if people actually read this list. Well I hope all you and those of you who didn't review join us next time for:

**Chapter 19: Real or Ghost?** Next 2 chapters will probably be a little short but they'll have some really good stuff in them. Enjoy.


	20. Chapter 19 Real or Ghost?

Well I'm glad everyone liked the part with Midoriko. All the other fics I've read simply have the group make a wish on the jewel but they never say anything about Midoriko and I wanted to do something about that. Not to mention, she'll be slightly needed down the line. I had thought this chapter would be short but it turned out to be a little longer because of two new ideas that popped into my head at the last second. I hope you like this chapter.

**_exsanguination_** - I haven't heard anything about Kag & Kik being Midoriko's reincarnations but I think the series itself hints at that slightly but even if they did come out and say it the problem is that Midoriko's soul has been in the jewel the whole time, so how could she be reincarnated?

**_Takerus Lost Angel _**- I do feel privileged. Did you enjoy snowboarding? I can't wait until Tuesday. Then I start skiing again. :) Also don't feel bad that your the only one that picked Kouga, that just means your special. and I'd still be willing to hear as who you think Sess should be paired with. As I said before, what people said doesn't have a say in the story, I just wanted to know everyone's preference.

**_SilentDark_** - I highly doubt that Ramen is a position in Japanese govt. As for the food ramen, I can't say that I totally like it. I'm not fond of it but if I was starving I'd eat it. I'm a very picky eater.

**_wsantelm_** - I must say that I liked your review. Both scenarios with Midoriko are hilarious but I'm not planning anything like that, sorry. As for Sess, I have to ask, have you just seen the episodes on Cartoon Network? If you have you'll notice that after Sess has his fight with demon IY, he starts to get away from being a villain. As a matter of fact, IY and Sess fight side by side in battle a few times. So he's not as bad as he first seems and definitely not as bad as Naraku.

**_Sango13_** - Good job on predicting. I didn't think anybody would really notice but I'm somewhat glad you did. Now if you could only see what I have in store. ha ha ha.

**_midniteracer_** - Okay just to let you in on something, I have seen both subbed and dubbed versions of IY. In the subbed version's Sango's cat is called Kirara even though its pronounced Kilala. Don't ask me why but they seem to pronounce an r as an l in japanese.

Thanks all of you who are reviewing. Without you this story wouldn't be getting far. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and just remember, I don't own IY. I had him once but as the saying goes if you love something set it free, if it comes back its yours. If it doesn't, go and hunt it down. So I'm in the process of hunting him. Later

A Wish From the Heart

  
Chapter 19: Real or Ghost?  


After looking around, Midoriko put her sword away and walked over to the group. She looked at Inuyasha and smiled. "Thank you. My long battle with that demon is finally over."

"Well this is interesting," Kagome said even though it was a huge understatement. "Care to explain, Inuyasha?"

Everyone turned to look at him. "Hey don't look at me. I don't have a clue as to what is going on. Ask her," he said pointing to Midoriko.

Midoriko just smiled at them. "Could you please explain it to us, Miss Midoriko?" Kagome asked her politely.

"Sure, but I'd prefer if I explained it to you outside. It's been a while since I've felt and smelled fresh air. I could definitely use some," Midoriko said as she turned to make her way out of the cave. "And by the way, just call me Midoriko." Once they reached outside, Midoriko took in a huge breath of air and stretched in the remaining sunlight of the day. "Ah, it's so good to be outside again. Thanks again."

"Sure," Inuyasha said unsteadily. "Now can you please explain what is going on?"

"Alright, just where to start?" she said as she thought to herself.

"Are you a ghost or real or what?" Inuyasha said interrupting. 

"Well I was going to start at the beginning but if you must know I'm real," she replied. "Well everyone here knows the origin of the Shikon Jewel so I don't have to explain that just as long as you remember both my soul and the soul of that demon was in the Shikon Jewel. Because of both souls in the jewel, it was easily swayed between good and evil. When the jewel was used for good, my soul was stronger but when it was used for evil my opponent became stronger. The only thing about this was that it was easily changed by whoever had the jewel. Inuyasha, when you made your wish it gave me more power and it became permanent. I'm glad you eventually choose the wish that you did. You made a selfless, good natured wish and that's a reason I got more power. If you or Naraku had made a selfish wish that you only cared about yourself, then the demon would have gained more power."

"So you're saying if I would have gone with my original wish to be a full demon, then I would have been helping that demon?" Inuyasha asked.

"Not necessarily," Midoriko said surprising everyone. "Your intentions are what would have made it good or bad. For instance, if you would have made that wish only so you could have become a big bad demon, then yes that would be bad. If you had made that same wish so that you could be more powerful to protect people such as Kagome or any other good intention, then it would have the same outcome as you have today. It's what's in your heart at the time of the wish."

"I told you, you had a good heart," Kagome said to Inuyasha.

"Feh," was Inuyasha's response. "That still doesn't explain what's going on here."

"Yes, well I'm getting to that. After you made your wish, I was the one that gave you the urge to come here. I wanted my body back," Midoriko said. "I respected you need to see your parents though so I didn't bother you too much but as your stay came to a close I wanted to make sure you came here so I made the urge stronger. I knew that even if you didn't want to come, you'd get annoyed enough that you'd come here."

"Yeah, well next time annoy someone else," Inuyasha said.

"If you were locked in the jewel, how did you know where we were going?" Sango asked.

"I may have been locked in a jewel but I still knew what was going on outside. Even when the jewel was shattered I was aware of what was going on around me. So I know all of your adventures," she told them. Midoriko then turned to Kagome, "I must say that I find your era quite interesting. Things seem to change a lot between now and then. It actually surprises me that you would come back to such primitive time like this."

"Well this era might be primitive when it comes to technology but I like this era for its beauty," Kagome told her. 

"So what will you do now?" Miroku asked. "Will you continue to purify demons?"

"I wish I could," Midoriko replied. "As you know, my power was equal to that of the demon I fought and it was Inuyasha's wish that gave me the extra power to beat it. Unfortunately I practically used all my power to defeat it. So as of now, I'm about as powerful as a regular miko." She then looked directly at Kagome, "you're way more powerful than me now."

"I don't think, I'm that powerful," Kagome said humbly.

"Quit being modest," Midoriko replied. "You are probably the most powerful miko of this time and probably your time."

Sango's father decided to interrupt at this point. "Well it's getting kind of late. I think we should head back to the village. Midoriko you are welcome to stay at the village as long as you like."

"I think I would like that," Midoriko said. "I may not be as powerful as before but I'm willing to continue to help people against demons."

"Your help is greatly appreciated," Sango's father replied. Everyone walked back to the village together. Along the way Sango's father remembered something. He spoke quietly with Midoriko about it. "I just remembered. We only have guest room and Kagome and Inuyasha will be using that. I'm sure we could make at least a makeshift house for you tomorrow but I'm trying to think about where I could set you up tonight."

"I might have an idea," Midoriko responded with a grin. She then leaned in and told him her plan.

After hearing her plan, he smiled as well, "I think I like your plan. With the right persuasion," he said cracking his knuckles, "then there is nothing to worry about." With that he went up to everyone else in the group to talk to them.

"WHAT?!?" Sango yelled after hearing the plan. "You have got to be kidding me. You want me to share a room with Miroku?"

"It's only for one night, two at the most. Just until we can get a place built for Midoriko to live in the village," he told his daughter. "Besides, I'm sure Miroku will be on his best behavior, right Miroku?"

"Of course," Miroku responded. He knew what the father was trying to tell him and either way he wouldn't have been stupid enough to grope Sango in her own house with her parents around. 

"I'm still not so sure about it," Sango said.

"Well from your adventures you always used to sleep with him around didn't you. What's the difference now?"

"Well Kagome and Inuyasha were there as well," Sango said.

"Does it really bother you that much if I sleep in the same room as you," Miroku said. "I will sleep outside then." It may have been an easy way of getting to agree with her father via a guilty conscious but he didn't mean it that way. If she would rather it, he would sleep outside.

"No, I don't want you to sleep outside," Sango said. "You can sleep in my room but I'm warning you. If you lay one hand on me, you'll find yourself sleeping outside really quick."

"I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing," Miroku said in his defense. 

*****

The next day, everyone was up early to see Inuyasha and Kagome leave. They had decided to leave. Kagome missed her family and she wanted to show Inuyasha around her world. Not to mention that Kagome wanted to go over some things for school before it started. She had barely passed the last year and she wanted to be prepared for this upcoming one. It would be her final year in high school.

"Well, I'm going to miss you Kagome," Sango said as she tried to refrain from crying. "Promise me you'll come back and visit some time."

"I will. You have my word," Kagome told her. "I hope things go well with you and Miroku."

Sango blushed at this. "Well at least he didn't try anything last night," she told her friend. "Best luck with Inuyasha." Sango smirked as it was Kagome's turn to blush.

Midoriko then came over to see Kagome. "Remember what I said. You're a very powerful miko and don't forget it."

"I won't though I still don't think I'm that powerful. Thank you very much," Kagome said.

Midoriko then walked over to Inuyasha who had just gotten finished talking with Miroku. "Thank you very much. If it wasn't for you making that wish and coming here, I would still be stuck in that cave if not worse. I am in your debt," Midoriko told him.

"You don't owe me anything," Inuyasha said. "Just quit thanking me and we'll call it even."

"One of these days, Inuyasha, you'll have to learn how to accept a person's thanks." Midoriko said. She then extended her hand, "Can we at least shake and call it even?" Inuyasha was a little unsure about this but decided to trust her anyway and shake her hand. The moment that their hands touched, Inuyasha felt a surge go through his body. Kagome had even sensed it and turned to find out what happened.

"What the hell did you do?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Call it my way of paying my debt. It's a small gift," Midoriko said.

"What is it?" Inuyasha asked.

"You'll know when the time comes. It isn't anything big but it will help you. Have fun in the future," Midoriko said as she walked away.

"Any idea what she did?" Miroku asked.

"Well I don't feel any stronger and besides I don't think she'd have enough power to make me stronger," Inuyasha told his friends. "She didn't do any harm so I don't really care. Well, Kagome, I think we better get going. Bye guys." Kagome wished her friends goodbye and got on Inuyasha's back. With that they headed home.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that brings another chapter to a close. If anyone is expecting Midoriko's gift to be something big, your gonna have your hopes killed cause it isn't. You'll actually find out in a few chapters what it is. As I've said in the past, the next chapter will be short but I think you'll all like it. So be sure to check it out. Now before I have a referral I have yet another poll question:

  
**Should I have a song chapter in this story? (Where either a song's playing in the background or the character's sing karaoke)**

Well its a simply yes or no. If you want to be more specific go right ahead. This might affect the story. Now for my referral:

  
**_Simply Irresistible_** by _angel-wings-131_ storyid=1485423 This fic is a little more depressing to start off with and I was a little unsure about reading this fic but with the newest chapter, I was blown away. This is definitely worth a read.

  
Thanks to my great reviewers: Inushemeeko, Angel452, chinta, Defafaeth Mechqua, Sakume Nohara, Raven ShadowCroft, Kawaii monkey hanyou, Miss Queen of the World, Ryguy5387, Kourtney1617, midniteracer, demonic honyou, xo-Kagome-ox, Brittanie Love, Silver Warrior, anime mistress, Sango13, CaribMiko03, KittyDemon16, wsantelm, SilentDark, Evil-Miyu, Takerus Lost Angel, inuyashabutterfly, exsanguination, Black Dice, Weirdo's Rule, HIllary, Just Me17, Selcryn, darkinuyasha, Phoenix Archangel, Hanyou-Girl25, and Sara. Well that's it. Be sure to come next time for:

**Chapter 20: A Confession From the Heart** I think you guys know what's going to happen here. I'll make this deal. If I reach 370 reviews in 24 hours I'll update tomorrow rather than the day after.


	21. Chapter 20 A Confession From the Heart

Well I didn't get up to 370 reviews but you guys did get me over 350 - not to mention I'm gonna be at my friend's all day tomorrow. He's having a Blue Gender marathon and I've only seen a bit of it so I'm gonna be there until around midnight. Fun. Well I don't have much to say and I'm also trying to be quick since its 3 AM. My updates might start to slow down soon since I start college again on Monday but I'll do my best to continue updating every other day. 

**_DarkBahamut_** - That would be quite funny if it was karaoke with a lot of sits but there'd be problems. One that would look really awkward and Kagome wouldn't want to do that to IY. Also I mention that when Kagome uses the concealing spell the Sit command won't work anymore. She just won't tell IY right away. lol.

**_Flare4ever_** - I don't mind if you refer people to my story. I'd actually like that. Funny I try to convince my friends to read it but they don't.

**_exsanguination_** - I think singing karaoke could be serious as well. It would help convey the feelings of the singer if the right song is chosen. I'm still not totally sure what I'll do so just wait and see.

**_Hanyou-Girl25_** - you say that singing karaoke is worn out but I see more people using it in the background rather than karaoke. I don't run into the karaoke too much.

**_Eva_** - You know my English teacher told me the same thing about repetition. I know I suffer from it and I'm trying to fix it but since I don't proofread its a bit hard. I'm glad your sticking through it though.

**_pyro_** - I didn't say how many chapters this would be. That's because of one certain thing. It isn't totally written yet and I come up with new things along the way so I can't give a set amount. I'd say there is at least 10-15 more chapters if not more.

**_ladykaa28_** - it being something that would help IY adapt to Kag's time. now you might be onto something but don't tell anyone. :)

**_wsantelm_** - to buy the Inu set or not to buy? I personally am not going to buy it for 2 reasons: (1) is going to cost a lot of money because of so many episodes and (2) I have up to 114 on VCD subtitled. Only cost me $50 on ebay. That's why I'm so far ahead of CN/AS.

_ **About the singing**_ - Well its obvious that I can't please everyone with this. If I do this, its still going to be a bit later. Right now, I'm leaning towards karaoke cause I just can't get this song out of my head and I think it would be great to use. I won't tell you though. It's no fun if I give everything away. As I said before, nothing is set in stone and can change so there are never any guarantees. Now on with the chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY, I don't own IY, I don't own IY. Have I said it enough times yet. I'm getting tired of repeating myself.

A Wish From the Heart

  
Chapter 20: A Confession from the Heart  


Kagome looked around as they had finally reached Kaede's village. Together they walked into Kaede's hut to see her sitting there eating supper. "Inuyasha, Kagome, how have ye been?"

"Good," Kagome said. "And you?"

"I have been doing okay," Kaede responded. "I would offer ye some food but I only made enough for myself."

"That's okay," Inuyasha said. "A little before we came here we stopped and had some of Kagome's food."

"So how was your trip?"

"It was great," Kagome said as she filled Kaede in on Inuyasha's wish and going to his parent's castle and even about reviving Midoriko.

"Ye have had quite an interesting adventure. I was wondering why ye didn't have Sango, Miroku, or Shippo with ye," Kaede replied. "Well if ye will give me a second. I need to go outside to check on something." 

With that Kaede got up and left the hut. Kagome then turned to Inuyasha who had just been sitting down listening to the two women while they had talked. "Inuyasha, since we're going to be going home soon, I think I should try that spell on you, alright?"

"Okay but just one thing," Inuyasha said. "I don't want to go back to your time tonight. I want to stay here in the Feudal Era tonight."

"Okay, Inuyasha. I don't mind at all," Kagome said. "Now give me your hands." Inuyasha and her joined hands as Kagome concentrated. He could feel her miko energy build up and he even felt some start to surge through himself. The beads around his neck even started to glow. After about a minute, he felt the energy stop and Kagome let go of his hands.

"Did it work?" Inuyasha asked since he couldn't look at himself.

"I'm not sure," Kagome said. "You look the same to me. Maybe it takes time to work?"

At this time Kaede walked back into the hut carrying some herbs she had gathered. As soon as she looked at Inuyasha the bowl fell from her hands. "Inuyasha, what has happened to ye?" Kaede asked a little startled. "Your ears and claws are gone, yet ye have silver hair. I would have thought it was ye human night if not for your hair."

"I guess it did work," Inuyasha said. He then turned to Kagome, "What do you see?"

"You look the same as before," Kagome said. "Maybe it's because I cast the spell that I can see through it. I do sense an aura around you."

"What spell?" Kaede asked still confused about everything.

"My mother taught Kagome a spell that would make me seem human so that I could spend time in her world without any trouble," Inuyasha told her.

"That is quite a spell," Kaede said. "Ye have done well with it. I would have thought that Inuyasha's hair would have changed back to black as well."

"I think I could have done that," Kagome said. "It would have required more power though – not to mention I like the silver hair." Kagome cheeks reddened at that last comment.

"_She likes my hair. That's good,_" Inuyasha thought to himself. He then remembered something. He was about to speak when he saw Kagome leaning in towards him. "What are you doing?" Kagome said nothing but reached her hand towards his head. Inuyasha then felt Kagome's fingers on his ears at the top of his head.

Kagome pulled her hand back then satisfied. "Yeah he's still the same," she said with a smile.

Inuyasha couldn't think of anything to say, he was just surprised. After a minute he regained his composure and started to stand. "I'm going to go for a walk. Want to come?" he asked as he extended a hand to Kagome.

"Sure," she said as she took his hand and left with him. They walked around Inuyasha's Forest for a while. They didn't talk much just admired everything in the woods. They had been through here many times but usually they were fight a demon or fighting each other so they never really had a chance to admire everything around them. Not surprising, their walked had stopped when they reached to God Tree. "To think, it's been almost two years since we met here," Kagome said with a smile.

"Yeah, I would still be here if it wasn't for you," Inuyasha said smiling at her.

"You never did thank me for that," Kagome said.

"Well as I remember it," Inuyasha said. "I saved you from a centipede. So that makes us even." 

"Alright," Kagome said. She knew she could have said about him trying to kill her then but she decided against it. Kagome then gave a small yawn. She didn't realize how tired she was. Inuyasha noticed this. He went over to Kagome and picked her up bridal style. Kagome was surprised by this but even more shocked when she realized that Inuyasha was jumping up into the God Tree. He finally stopped near the top.

Inuyasha noticed her being a bit tense and not moving. "Don't worry, I won't let you fall," he told her. 

It was then that she looked around. She noticed that while in a tree, it had an excellent view of the surround country side and it was near sunset. "This is beautiful," Kagome said. [yes, I know I keep coming back to the sunset thing but it's the best romantic thing I can come up with. Suggestions are welcome.]

"Not as beautiful as you," Inuyasha accidentally said out loud. He had meant to just think that. His face quickly became red at his mistake.

Kagome looked back at him and could see his blush. She was shocked to hear him say that. "Thank you, Inuyasha. That makes me feel real nice."

Inuyasha decided that it was now or never. He picked Kagome up from the branch she was sitting on and sat her on his lap. He then proceeded to put his arms both lovingly and protectively around her. "I've always thought that, I just never told you," He said to her. "You know there's one other thing I've never told you."

"What's that?" Kagome asked as she leaned slightly to look him in the eyes.

Rather than answer right away, he leaned in and gave her a passion filled kiss. Kagome openly accepted the kiss. It lasted until they realized that they both needed air. Even though neither wanted it to end, they broke apart. Kagome was catching her breath when Inuyasha answered her question. "I love you," he told her as he looked straight into her eyes. 

Kagome soon lost the breath she had been gathering. Kagome had been expecting maybe another nice comment from him but this just totally blew her away. She could tell he was telling the truth. His eyes were filled with love and it was all directed at her. It took her a bit but she was finally able to speak again, "I love you too," she said. Not long after she spoke those words, they were kissing yet again. They continued this for quite a while. Kagome was glad that they were up in the tree, no one could bother this wonderful moment. After a long while they finally stopped. Kagome looked to Inuyasha, "Do you think we should go back to Kaede's hut?"

"No, I think we'll be just fine here," Inuyasha told her.

"It's starting to get a bit cold," Kagome told him.

Inuyasha slowly took off his fire rat coat making sure not to let Kagome fall. Then he wrapped it around Kagome like a blanket. Kagome felt his strong arms envelop her as he leaned back against the tree. "Any more problems?" he asked her.

"As long as you're here, no," Kagome said as she laid her head back into his chest and quickly fell asleep. Inuyasha watched her sleep for a bit admiring her beauty but then he too fell asleep.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well I hope everyone liked that. You've been waiting long enough. Well there are some interesting things to come. Next chapter Kagome finally goes back to her time. I wonder what excuses her grandfather used this time? lol. After that we learn who was watching Kagome. And then after that, we start the mystery/action/adventure. I'm really gonna have some fun then. I hope everyone is ready. Now for referral:

  
**_We All Watch the Same Sunsets_** by _Buggy Babble_ storyid=1195922 Its a really nice fic. The humor is real nice and the romance is really picking up. 

  
Well also thanks to my great reviewers. Its cause of you that I updated so soon: Angel452, wsantelm, Silver Warrior, Katelyn, Allie, chinta, Inushemeeko, Sakume Nohara, ladykaa28, Defafaeth Mechqua, ashitaka666, Kaida1, Ryguy5387, darkinuyasha, kiamiawia, Kourtney1617, Brittanie Love, pyro, Ashley, xo-Kagome-ox, Alexandra, Sango13, Eva, animemistress419, Hanyou-Girl25, b00kperson, rin90, exsanguination, christopher28, Silver Kitsune, Katsurina, Flare3ever, Darkbahamut, and Smix. Thank you. Be sure to come next time for:

**Chapter 21: Meeting Inuyasha**


	22. Chapter 21 Meeting Inuyasha

Welcome once again to my story. I know this update is actually a day late but like I said school has started and its already a total pain. I have 5- 1 hour classes in a row on Mondays, not even a break for lunch. It totally sucks. The other days don't look to nice either at this point. So if updates really start to slow down, don't complain. I guarantee I will at least update once a week since I have weekends but I will try to continue with updating as often as I can.

**_kiamiawia_** - thank you so much for the link to the pic. That is a very nice pic and I do almost agree with you, though I have never seen this image before you sent me the link. The pic has the setting of being sunrise while the story was sunset, that's the only difference though it was real close. Thanks again.

**_fireash_** - As I said before, I'm not necessarily pairing Kagura with Sess. That's just the pairing I prefer when I read. As to her role in this story, you'll have to wait and see if she has any role at all.

**_SilentDark_** - That's pretty romantic. You have a real knack for that but I'm sure that comes from you imagining you and Sess in that place, right? lol.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Good to hear, always have to watch more IY. I believe in my area Cartoon Network has gotten a hold of like 50 more episodes. If you want a listing of all episodes according to season goto they have listings for just about all TV series. As for skiing I'm going today, so wish me luck.

**_Inuyashaluver_** - Inuyasha confesses his love in stories because we the fans are then all powerful where as if you want that in the anime you'll have to talk to Rumiko Takahashi. Though in the second movie IY and Kagome kiss.

**_Phoenix Archangel_** - Yeah I liked IY's hair silver rather than black. I wanted him to stand out more. Not to mention the joke I make in this chapter.

**Note to ALL READERS** (small speech so beware) - Some people have often been saying that the chapters are too short or something along those lines. There is a reason I have made the chapters like this. I started writing fanfics almost 3 years ago. I at first had a lot of inspiration for my story and wrote about 1 chapter a month but the chapters were 8-10 pages in length. As time went on the chapter length did increase to about 12-15 pages but so did the time it took to get them out. It went to 2 months and then at one point I didn't update for 7 months. This story became more of a chore to write. I never did finish it. I also got tired of writing. Over that 2 years I had written actually two stories and I was actually able to finish the one (that's my Gundam story). When I started writing this story (and that was before it was posted), I feared that it would take the same path as my other one and never get finished but I decided to go with it anyway. I figured that if I kept the chapters short and if I got enough reviews my inspiration would hold out for me to finish this story. The fear of not finishing increased when I decided to add some more things to the story. In my original idea, this story could have been wrapped up in about 5 more chapters, if that. Now its going to last around 15 more. I had got these ideas early on and was even more afraid that I wouldn't finish. I found though that more and more people reviewed my story and it was you that reviewed that kept me going. Now that IY has reached Kagome's time, I really feel that I can fully finish this story and its all thanks to all of you who reviewed my story. Thank you all especially if you actually read all of this.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY, okay.

**A Wish From the Heart  
**

**Chapter 21: Meeting Inuyasha  
**

Inuyasha picked up Kagome and jumped out of the well. He looked around the well house. "Are you sure your family will be okay with me staying here? I know they haven't minded me staying over for the night before but this is more than just one night?" Inuyasha said nervously.

Before he could continue his questions, Kagome cut him off, "Inuyasha, calm down. It will be fine. Now let's go," she said almost ordering him. Inuyasha just followed behind her still afraid he wouldn't be allowed to stay.

When they walked in the house Kagome's mother gladly greeted them. When she went to say hi to Inuyasha she didn't speak for a bit. Inuyasha was starting to get worried. "What happened to your ears?" Mrs. Higurashi asked Inuyasha.

Inuyasha almost fell over. He wasn't expecting that. Luckily Kagome saved him. "He's still the same. He has a spell on him that people won't be able to see his ears."

Mrs. Higurashi then reached up to where his ears where and gave them a small tweak. "Yup, there still there," she said with a smile.

"Just don't tell gramps, that way he'll leave Inuyasha alone," Kagome told her mother. "Speaking of gramps, what diseases have I had since I've been gone? My friends probably have called or stopped by and I'm sure he's given my plenty of diseases in a month. Let me guess: dialysis, kidney failure…"

Kagome continued to go on and on with diseases but her mother and Inuyasha stopped paying attention. She even went into the kitchen and got Inuyasha something to drink. When she returned Kagome was finally winding down. When she finished, she looked to her mother with no idea that her mother left. Finally Mrs. Higurashi spoke, "Actually your grandfather didn't give you any fake diseases. When your friends called I got a chance to speak with them and I made up an excuse. I told them you were visiting your aunt for the summer."

"But I don't have an aunt?" Kagome said questioningly.

"Yeah but they don't know that," Mrs. Higurashi said with a smile.

Inuyasha then coughed getting their attention. When Kagome looked at him she realized that she had forgotten about him. "Mom, would it be okay for Inuyasha to stay here for a while?" Kagome asked slightly pleading.

"Of course he can stay," she replied. She then turned to Inuyasha happily, "So how long will you be staying with us?"

"I don't really know," Inuyasha answered. "I was just a little bored in the Feudal era and thought I'd spend some time here."

"Well you're welcome to stay as long as you like," Kagome's mother told him.

"Thank you," he said and bowed slightly. Just then Souta and Gramps walked in. As soon as Souta saw Inuyasha he ran up to him.

"Inuyasha, I'm glad you're here. I haven't seen you in such a long time I was thinking that Kagome was forcing you not to come anymore," the young boy said.

"Ah, I see someone has been able to exorcise the demon part of you," gramps said. Kagome and Mrs. Higurashi knew the truth but decided not to say anything.

Souta though seemed a little disappointed, "What happened to your ears?"

"I'll tell you later," Inuyasha said. He didn't mind telling the kid but not with the grandfather around.

**--------------------------------**

A little while later, Gramps had gotten Inuyasha to help clean up the shrine. Inuyasha didn't necessarily want to but since the Higurashi's were being nice and letting him stay, he thought it wouldn't hurt. Not to mention, Kagome had challenged him saying that the work should be nothing for a hanyou rather than a human.

Meanwhile, Kagome had just finished helping to clean some of the house and was taking a break. While taking her break the doorbell rang, Kagome decided to get it since her mother was still cleaning and Souta was too busy playing his video games. When she answered the door, she was happy to see her 3 friends: Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. "Kagome," they all said at the same time.

"Hey how are you doing?" she said as she walked outside with her friends.

"We're doing good," Eri answered for everyone. "How was your trip to your aunt's?"

"It was nice," Kagome said. "If my mom told you guys I'd be there for the summer what made you come here halfway through summer break?"

"Well we kind of figured you miss us and your home and you'd come home early," Yuka said. "You missed us didn't you?" Kagome gave a small nod in agreement. "So where does your aunt live?"

Kagome had to think quickly. She wasn't quite ready for that question and since she really didn't have an aunt she needed an answer. That's when she came up with a great reply. "She lives to the west. It's only a small town but I liked staying there."

Ayumi had been looking around and noticed something. "So who's the old guy you have working here?" she asked looking at the back of Inuyasha. Inuyasha could clearly here them because of his hearing dropped the broom he was holding.

Kagome gave a small laugh at question. "That's not an old guy. That's Inuyasha. His hair is silver," as soon as Kagome said this all her friends were looking intensely at her.

Eri asked, "Isn't that your arrogant,"

"Violent," Yuka added.

"Two-timing," Ayumi included.

"Jealous boyfriend?" they all finished.

All of a sudden Kagome became a little scared. Her friends were staring at her intently and if she listened good enough she could hear a small growl from Inuyasha's direction. "It's not really like that," Kagome said in defense. "He's really changed. He's a lot nicer. Come on I'll introduce you." She lead her friends over to Inuyasha who by now had stopped sweeping and was taking a break. When her friends saw Inuyasha they were speechless. "Eri, Yuka, Ayumi, I want you to meet my boyfriend, Inuyasha," Kagome said and then turned to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha these are my friends: Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. Be nice," she whispered the last part.

"Hello," he told them since they couldn't seem to say anything.

After hearing his greeting, they snapped out of their trances. "Hello," they all greeted him. Eri then spoke up, "Are you visiting?"

"Yes," he replied calmly though the stares from Kagome's friends were getting on his nerves. "I don't know how long but I hope to be here as long as possible."

Kagome smiled at this. Kagome knew they'd soon ask where he was from so Kagome decided to save him from that question. "Inuyasha lives close to my aunt, so he came back with me," Kagome said.

Ayumi had been listening the whole time. She had known that Kagome actually didn't have an aunt and decided now to ask. "Kagome, we've known each other a long time and as far as I remember you don't have an aunt," she said. Kagome looked at her worriedly. She was busted and didn't know what to say. Ayumi then continued, "You were spending the summer with Inuyasha weren't you?"

Eri and Yuka gasped at this and looked at Kagome, "Is this true?"

Kagome blushed a little, "Yes."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Eri asked.

"Well it was a last minute sort of thing," Kagome said, "and I wasn't sure if you'd be happy if I told you because you're always trying to set me up with Hojo."

Kagome friends quickly pulled here aside, "You shouldn't tell him that besides we never would have done that if we would have known he looked this good," Yuka said. "I can see why you never gave up on him."

"Though if you do, let me know," Eri said.

Just then Kagome's mother yelled from the doorway of the house, "Kagome, Inuyasha dinner is ready."

"Well, we have to go," Kagome told her friends

"See ya later Kagome," they all said. "Bye Inuyasha." Inuyasha just waved as they left.

"I'm glad that's over," Inuyasha said.

"I know, for once I totally agree with you," Kagome said. Just then she got a weird feeling again. She could almost feel someone watching her. She looked around. There seemed to be no one but her and Inuyasha, and he was walking towards the house.

"Kagome," Inuyasha called snapping her out of her trance. "You coming or what?"

"Yeah," Kagome said as she gave one last glance around and walked into the house with Inuyasha. "_If someone was out there, Inuyasha would have at least smelled them, wouldn't he?_" she asked herself.

_**#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&**_

Well this is going to be quick here and no referral today cause its almost 3 AM and I have school tomorrow. Well next chapter we find out who exactly is watching Kagome. Last calls for guesses! After that, I begin to have fun with weaving some mystery and starting the Act/Adv part. jumps up and down And I think after that we'll find out Midoriko's gift. I could tie it in with one of the earlier chapter but I really want to keep it separate so focus more on each part. So come next time for:

**Chapter 22: Catching the Watcher**


	23. Chapter 22 Catching the Watcher

Welcome everyone. This is another fine chapter to my story. I know its a little short but I didn't totally know what to do in this chapter other than what happens at the end. And I wanted to end it there as a sort of cliffhanger. I can't wait for the next chapter that's when I start to have some real fun. 

**_Black Dragon_** - I believe I did get your earlier review. As you can tell, here's another chapter. So I hope to see a review. lol. :)

**_Inuchan fan_** - No the story isn't over yet. There's still a bit to go. I enjoyed reading your reviews. You'd yell about IY's mother being Izayoi as if it would make a difference right away. I'm not complaining, I just found it funny.

**_SilentChaos89_** - Thank you for reviewing so much it really helps. I hope you get to read this chapter in peace.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Well I did go skiing. I'm guess from what you're saying that you had some bad weather. If that's true then you live west of me cause as I type this we're getting a snow storm (then again a lot of people are to the west of me. I live in PA which is practically on the eastern coast. lol) I must say that I don't know any voice actors but TV Tome has come in handy a lot of times.

**_Lady Fae_** - I'm glad you like the story. I'm happy that you decided to read it. I know its getting quite big and it will only get bigger. I try to update my story every other day.

**_Mii-chan_** - I actually quickly noted one time that Kikyo was killed a second time by Naraku. She stayed dead because I don't like her and because her soul is in Kagome. IY's parents I'm pretty sure that were dead long before Kikyo. As for IY's parents being reincarnated, remember not everyone gets brought back and besides it took 400 years for Kikyo to be reincarnated.

**_Flint, another lone wolf_** - Well the thing about the chapters is this: I don't consider the prologue a full chapter but ff.net does so its offset by 1. Hope you understand now, enjoy.

**_jen dls_** - Well you say I write a lot better than you but take one thing into account. I got into writing since about 6th or 7th grade. My earlier works for school weren't that great but I have improved over time. Like they say, practice makes perfect.

**_wsantelm_** - as for sleeping arrangments, Kagome's mom will know about them. The only important person that won't know is me cause I haven't decided yet. lol. As for the concealing spell. As planned now, it will wear off twice. Once in the next chapter and then again later and the latter is more important.

**_Eva_** - Yes it was fun to keep Kag's friends in character. The only thing I have to figure out now is which one was the oddball. The one that always liked homework and always for the IY/Kag relationship rather than her other friends that told her to break it off. I think it was Ayumi but I'm not sure. If you know, please tell me.

**_Sango13_** - Well in answer for your question, who ever said IY was going to meet up with Sess or Kagura. I hate to disappoint but I don't think Sess will be in the story any more. He will be mentioned. As for Kagura, you'll have to wait and see.

**_SapphireLynns9_** - Well thank you. I did think this through but things do seem to get added on. As for who's watching Kag, you'll find out in this chapter. As for your fic, I'd love to help but there's one thing. I haven't seen Beyblade before so I wouldn't have a clue as to what's going on. 

**_Ryguy5387_** - Yeah about 15 chapters and that's an estimate but just remember I get ideas as I go on so if I think up more I'll add more or I'll eventually write a sequel, who knows what the future may bring.

**_DestroyerDRT_** - I'm glad you like my story. As for the 3 main ideas you said about, I plan on writing more IY fan fics after this one but something tells me that eventually I might have to use one of those ideas. Not yet though, I have a small story idea I'm gonna do after this and I haven't seen anything like it.

Well that's all the responses for now, I'm so close to 500 reviews it so cool. I never thought I'd get this far but now that I'm this far I'm really hoping that I'll get to 1000 by the time I finish the story. Well by the end of this chapter you'll know who is watching Kagome so enjoy (wouldn't it suck if no one was really watching her but it was just her imagination. lol).

Disclaimer: I may be tired from lack of sleep but I still know that I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 22: Catching the Watcher  


Soon after dinner Kagome walked outside and looked around. She was sure she felt someone watching her before. She didn't have that feeling right now but she want to make sure she wasn't going crazy. She couldn't find any evidence that anyone other than her family, Inuyasha, or her friends had been there. 

"Looking for something?" Inuyasha called from behind her. He had gotten a little tired of playing with Souta and decided to look for Kagome. When he came out she was walking around the shrine as if looking for something. She hadn't noticed him and decided to sneak up on her. When he did call out to her he watched her give a small jump in the air at being caught.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" Kagome yelled at him. Inuyasha was going to say something back but saw that her eyes became serious. "Do you remember before dinner when I introduced you to my friends?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said waiting for her to say more.

"Did you smell anyone besides them around at the time?" Kagome asked him.

Inuyasha realized how serious this was and became stern, "I don't remember smelling anyone. Why?"

"Before we left to go to your parent's castle, did you come to this time at all?" Kagome asked not answering him.

"No," Inuyasha said, "You told me to give you a week and so that you didn't get mad at me I stayed in the Feudal Era. Now I'll ask again, why?"

"Well during that week, I had a feeling that someone was watching me. I just dismissed it and thought it might have been you," Kagome told him. "But while my friends were here, I got that feeling again. I might just be being paranoid but I thought I'd come out here and see if anyone was here."

"I don't smell anything now. Do you sense anything?" Inuyasha asked Kagome.

"Not right now," Kagome said. "So if someone was watching us before then they're gone now." Kagome was quiet for a while. She noticed Inuyasha was looking around but he didn't seem to notice anything either. Then he just looked at her confused. "So do you think I'm crazy?"

"I think your crazy for asking that," Inuyasha told her. "I've learned to trust your senses and if you say that you sensed someone then that's good enough for me. I just don't know what to do. This city of yours is just too big to go off and look for one person. We'll just have to wait for him to return."

Kagome smiled at him. "Thank you for believing me. I was starting to think that I was going crazy," Kagome told him.

"Inuyasha!" came a yell from the house. Both Inuyasha and Kagome knew the voice belonged to her little brother.

"No more video games," Inuyasha moaned. He didn't mind them at first but when Souta wanted him to play nonstop with even a break it was annoying. His eyes hurt after playing for so long.

Kagome gave a small laugh at his grumbling. "Come follow me," she said as she ran down the stair towards the street. He quickly followed her. "I'll show you around Tokyo. It will help if your going to be here a while."

*****

Almost 2 hours later they had returned. There was still a little more time until the sun went down. Kagome hadn't been able to show him the entire city because it was far too large. She had managed to show him about half of the city though. He was thoroughly impressed by the future. He had managed to see some of it before when he came to the future but now he had a chance to truly see it and understand everything. Kagome had really managed to explain everything pretty good and Inuyasha did his best keeping up with her. He could understand now why she was always bringing stuff from her era back to his. His time was so primitive compared to her's not to mention there was better food here. He really didn't know why Kagome liked to spend time in his world though when he though about it he guess that he'd get tired of the high buildings and would yearn for the forest.

"So what did you think?" Kagome asked as they reached the top of the stairs at the shrine.

"It's different," Inuyasha said. "There's a lot of cool stuff here that is really nice though there isn't many trees."

"Well there are a few parks in the city. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to show it to you," Kagome told him.

"So what's a park like?" he asked her.

"Well imagine your forest with sidewalks going through it, benches to sit down and rest, some open areas for people to have fun, and probably best of all the grass it cut," Kagome gave a small laugh. "I hate walking through some of the really high grass in your time especially with a skirt on."

It was Inuyasha's time to laugh. "I can't say that I disagree. It's nice when the grass is at a low level," he told her. He then noticed where he was. They were both under the God Tree. He looked at it for a bit. "I wonder what would have happened if you never would have come back in time and freed me. Would I have still been here in your time?"

"I think you might have," Kagome said. "I think we were destined to meet so not matter what we would have. Whether it was in the past or here in the future," Kagome told him. "Also though I didn't realize it at the time Kikyo had put a strong spell on you to keep you here so it would have taken a miko just as powerful if not more to break the spell and release you."

"I'm glad it was you that released me, even though I wasn't at the time," Inuyasha said. "Thank you." Inuyasha was about to lean in and kiss her as a way of showing thanks but he stopped when he noticed that she wasn't paying much attention to him. She seemed to be real tense and her eyes were real serious.

"Do you remember what I talked to you about before we let?" Kagome asked him. Inuyasha nodded in response. "I feel it again. What about you?"

"Nothing, can you tell where?" Inuyasha whispered.

"No," she replied quietly as well. "I can't tell where its coming from I can just sense it." 

Just at that moment, Inuyasha hugged her. While doing so he whispered in her ear, "There is someone out there. The wind just changed and I know where he is. I'm going to go for him, I want you to run into the house as fast as you can, okay?" Kagome just nodded. "On three: one, two, three…" With that Inuyasha let go of Kagome and jumped high in the air in the direction of the stalker. At the same time, Kagome bolted for the door to the house but kept an eye of Inuyasha as he went after the man. She noticed where he planned to land and could see some movement as the person was trying to get away. 

When Inuyasha landed the person had managed to only get about 10 feet away. With another quick stride forward he grabbed the collar of the man's jacket and shirt. Inuyasha pulled the man off the ground and carried him out of the bushes. "Let me go! They can't know I'm here! Let me go!" the man continued to yell. 

"Shut up!" Inuyasha yelled back at the man. He looked at the guy, he certainly didn't recognize him. Inuyasha looked over towards the house to make sure Kagome got in safely. Instead Kagome stood there at the door but wasn't moving. She was staring in shock at the man Inuyasha was holding. "Do you know this guy?" Inuyasha asked. By now the man stopped struggling; he realized it was fruitless and that he had already been noticed.

Kagome just stared at the man for a bit more. She was in total shock – her knees were barely supporting her. When she finally realized Inuyasha's question, she just nodded her head. She barely found a voice to speak, "He…he's m..my father."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well the big secret is out. It was Kag's father but now I leave you with some questions. Why is she shocked to see him? Was he dead or what? Was he a good father or abusive? Why doesn't he want his family to know he's there? What is truly going on? I love confusing people. You'll have your answers in the next chapter. So just hold on until then. In the next chapter I also start the Act/Adv/ Mystery and in my way Fun. And another character is going to be in the next chapter as well. So until then check out my referral to tide you over and to one person who asked though I don't remember who. All referrals are IY stories unless otherwise noted.

  
**_ Across Time_** by Kagome Hanyou storyid=1531514 Falls into DestroyerDRT's main ideas (you'd have to read his review to understand) but its a really good story none the less

Well I'd like to say thanks to all my reviewers. I'm not gonna go through all the names cause there were like 50 and its 3:30 AM and I have school tomorrow but thank you all. Come back next time for:

**Chapter 23: Dangerous Love**


	24. Chapter 23 Dangerous Love

Well now the fun begins. I hope you like the tangled web that I start to weave. Its going to become even better as we go on. Also, I'm so close to 500 reviews I figured I'd have it by this chapter. I feel like I'm on me knees. 2 reviews away. *crawls some more*

**_Inuyoukai_BladeMaster_** - I only know simple Japanese phrases such as Ja ne so I don't know what Izayoi actually means. Sorry about that.

**_Sango13_** - Well your partly right with your belief. It was because of IY's wish but not cause Kagome wished for it as well. The simple thing was that it brought back all the people they cared about, Kagome included.

**_Inuchan fan_** - What's wrong with cliffhangers, they're fun. Just like the partial one at the end of this chapter. :)

**_wsantelm_** - yes we could have IY kill him but that would be mean unless of course he'd have reason to. You'll find out.

**_Lynns_** - If you thought last chapter was mean, you'll think I'm the worst person soon enough. *insert evil laugh*

**_xo-Kagome-ox_** - now that I added Kag's father to the mix it gets interesting and dangerous. Even though he really doesn't have a big part its only to advance the story to the next part.

**_SilentDark_** - Nope sorry. No Hojo yet. I'll have to think as to how exactly he'll be in this story. I'm not sure yet myself.

**As for all the people that made a comment about Kag's father - **I was actually worried more people would have saw that coming. I'm glad I caught some people off guard. A lot of people asked as to how he's back, well you'll have to read to find out. There were some people who did figure it was Kag's father. Unfortunately I don't know who that is off the top of my head but you know who you are. Good job.

Disclaimer: Me + No money = No Inuyasha (college math at work)

  
A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 23: Dangerous Love  


Kagome just stared at the man for a bit more. She was in total shock – her knees were barely supporting her. When she finally realized Inuyasha's question, she just nodded her head. She barely found a voice to speak, "He…he's m..my father."

Inuyasha was surprised to hear this. In his two years of adventuring with Kagome, she had never mentioned her father nor had he asked. He watched as Kagome's legs gave out on her and she fell to her knees. He quickly ran over to her never letting go of the man he held. "Are you okay, Kagome?" he asked her. "I think it's best if we go inside."

Kagome didn't bother speaking. She didn't feel she could speak so instead she nodded. He helped her up using his other hand and led her into the house.

All the while her father tried to struggle out of the boy's grip. "Let me go. You don't understand what's going on," he told Inuyasha but it seemed that Inuyasha wasn't paying attention to him but instead to Kagome. When they got inside, Kagome's mother entered the room only to see her husband. He quickly stopped struggle as they seemed to look at one another for a bit. Mrs. Higurashi didn't last long as she fainted and fell to the floor.

By now Kagome had gotten her footing and went to help her mother up. "Inuyasha go into the living room and stay there," Kagome told her. "I'll be in with my mother in just a little bit. We're going to have a long talk."

Inuyasha took the man into the living room and sat down. When Inuyasha sat down, Kagome's father tried to get up and run away only to have Inuyasha grab his shoulder and force him down. He then looked straight at Inuyasha, "You don't understand. I can't be here. I have to go now before…"

"Give it up," Inuyasha interrupted him. "I'm not going to let you go." The man continued to try to get Inuyasha to let him leave but Inuyasha stood firm and wouldn't let him go. A little while later, Kagome and her mother joined Inuyasha in the living room.

Kagome's mother just stayed silent. She didn't really know what to say. Kagome choose to speak instead. "I want you to explain what's going on?" Kagome asked her father.

"I don't know," he replied.

"Then why is it that you keep saying that you have to leave here?" she pressed.

"I can't tell you that," he answered.

"Why not?" Kagome questioned again getting angry.

"Because it's too dangerous," he told her trying to scare her away from the truth.

Inuyasha decided to speak up, "Let me decide whether it's too dangerous or not."

"Trust me. It's way too dangerous," he replied yet again. 

Inuyasha could see how Kagome was frustrated and wanted answers and he was getting mad as well. Kagome's mother just seemed to be slightly out of it. He then looked at Kagome's father and gave him the meanest glare he could, "Listen, I'm not giving up until you tell me what is going on? You've been watching Kagome and the rest of your family for a while never coming near them. NOW I WANT TO KNOW WHY?"

He looked at the silver headed boy and couldn't help but be a little scared. He could tell the he meant what he said but he wasn't about to put his family in danger. Then he realized how to get out of it. "I'll tell you what. If you can answer a question of mine, I'll answer all your questions. Do we have a deal?" the man said thinking that Inuyasha could never answer the question. Inuyasha and Kagome nodded in agreement. "If you can tell me how I'm here, then I'll tell you."

"I'm not quite sure what you mean," Inuyasha said.

Kagome's mother seemed to be able to speak at this point and explained it to him. "Inuyasha, around the time Souta turned 1, my husband had a terrible car accident and died. He should be dead, we saw the body."

Inuyasha thought for a little bit and then he realized it. "Kagome, you said that the first time you felt your father watching you was when you came here for that week before our journey?" he asked her. Kagome nodded still unsure of what he was getting at. He looked at her father, "You don't know do you?"

"No, I don't," the father said.

"Well I happen to know how," Inuyasha said and Mr. Higurashi was surprised. "Have you ever heard of the Shikon no Tama?"

"I think so. It was one of those old legends my father-in-law always talked about though I can't say I paid much attention to it."

"I don't blame you," Inuyasha said. "The jewel is real. It is said grant its bearer a wish. A little over a month ago, we, as in me, Kagome, and 3 other friends, finished collecting all the shards of it and were able to put it back together. I took the jewel and made a wish. I wished that everyone we cared about would be brought back to life. I made this wish cause everyone in our group had lost our parents and other people close to us except for Kagome who I hadn't even realized had lost her father. It seems that the jewel has brought you back as well."

"That's a bit of a tough story to believe," he told them and thought it over for a second. "But to be honest after some of the stuff I've seen, I think I believe you."

"Good, now tell me why you keep saying you can't stay here?" Inuyasha said.

The man didn't know what to say. He still didn't want to tell him but he had made a deal and his honor kept him from breaking it. "I guess I should start at the beginning," he told them. "About a week before I died, I was coming home from work through the park. My car had been getting fixed so I was walking. Unfortunately I happened to see something that I shouldn't have. I saw a group of people kill a man. The people seemed to use some kind of magic or something and didn't look totally human."

"They were probably demons," Inuyasha said.

"I don't know but I rushed home as quickly as I could though I think they noticed me. The next day, it was in the news that the person killed was an informant from the yakuza. I got extremely worried. I figured the people that killed him were also yakuza and killed him for ratting them out. I tried to stay on guard but a week later I ended up running in with a few members. I tried to get away but they caught me. They asked me if I told anyone what I had seen and I told them I hadn't. It was then that they killed me. I didn't die in a car accident. They just made it look that way."

"Oh my god," Kagome and her mother gasped.

Inuyasha was surprised as well. He thought Kagome's time was more safe then his but he was finding out that there were dangers here as well especially with demons involved. The man though hadn't answered his question yet. "Okay, that was almost 10 years ago and the yakuza thought they killed you. So what danger is there still?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well that's it," he said. "When I found myself suddenly alive again, I wasn't totally sure what was going on. I found out that as you said almost 10 years went by. I didn't know if my family had moved on without me so I snuck here and watched them for a bit. What confuses me is how Kagome got out of the well house without me noticing. I mean I saw her go in but she didn't come out," He said a little confused. Kagome could only smile. She would tell her father everything but not at the moment. "Anyway I was also afraid that if any of the yakuza ever found out I was alive they might try to kill me as well as my family. I've kept out of sight the best I could. I was able to travel through Tokyo pretty well but today while I left here for a bit for a walk. I happened to pass one of the members that helped to kill me. I tried to keep him from seeing me but I think he did. I came back here for one last visit and I planned on leaving the city. I didn't want to put my family in danger."

"I told you, let me worry about the danger. Everything will be fine," Inuyasha promised Kagome's father.

"Did you hear me? These people are yakuza and if what you said is right some of them are demons. That just makes them more dangerous. You're just a regular boy, how can you say that everything will be okay?"

"Well it seems you don't have much of a choice," Inuyasha said as he looked out the window. Outside seemed to be two men in suits standing at the top of the stairs to the shrine. They definitely weren't searching for spiritual enlightenment. "Everyone stay here. You're about to learn how regular I am," Inuyasha said with sarcasm.

Kagome got up and followed him to the door. "Are you sure you going to be okay?" she asked worried about him.

"I'll be fine," Inuyasha said. He then opened the door and took a sniff of the air coming inside. "Besides they're humans." Inuyasha then continued to walk outside and Kagome couldn't help but at least follow him a bit of the way. "Can I help you people?" Inuyasha yelled out to them.

"Not really, we're not interested in a costume party!" the one man yelled back and laughed at his own joke. It was then Inuyasha noticed he was still wearing his clothes from the feudal era. He'd meant to ask Kagome for some from her time so as not to stand out but he figured it was good to be wearing this. It would help with the fight.

"Actually we're looking for a Mr. Higurashi," the other man said solemnly.

"Well I can't help you there," Inuyasha said. "He died a while ago."

"Don't mess with us kid," the second man said. "We know he's in there and we'll get to him even if we have to go through you."

Inuyasha smirked at this. "Well then by all means," Inuyasha said invitingly. "I was hoping I was worried I'd get out of shape." He then took a fighting stance.

"It's your funeral, kid," he replied. He then turned to the first man, "No guns, we don't want any extra attention." The first man nodded and they both pulled out a knife. They then proceeded to charge at Inuyasha but he just easily evaded their attacks. They continued but Inuyasha just seemed to have fun evading them and making them look like idiots. After about five minutes he got tired of this and decided to finally end the fight. While one attacked from the front, the other attacked from the side. Inuyasha evaded the first one but purposely didn't dodge the second. The man was sure he had Inuyasha. He watched as all Inuyasha could do was put up his arm in defense. The man was shocked as he saw his blade break the moment it hit Inuyasha haori. He quickly retreated back. "What the hell? What kind of armor is that?" the man said getting worried.

"I don't know but I don't like it," the other said sternly. 

"What's wrong? Don't you like my clothes?" Inuyasha joked. 

"Very funny," the second man replied. "For that, we'll not only kill you and Mr. Higurashi but we'll kill everyone here and burn down this old shrine." Inuyasha growled in response. Then without warning, Inuyasha ran towards the second man. He had no time to react and Inuyasha knocked the knife out of his hands and then threw him into a near by column effectively knocking him out. The first man looked on scared. Just as he was about to run away, Inuyasha grabbed him and started punching him. Inuyasha was angry but he didn't kill the man or even knock him out. 

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled to him. Inuyasha turned to her. "The spell," she replied.

Inuyasha could see that his claws were showing. "I don't care!" He yelled back. He then picked the man up and slammed him into a wall. He then looked the guy right in the eye. "Now listen up, I'm letting you go but for one reason. Tell you boss, whoever the hell it is, that if he wants to do anything to the Higurashi's, he'll have to get through me first. GOT THAT?!" The man was so bruised he wasn't sure if he could speak. Instead he just nodded his head even though that hurt. "Good, now get lost before I change my mind," Inuyasha said as he tossed the man down the stairs. In a matter of minutes the guy fell to the bottom and had left running as fast as he could.

Inuyasha just sighed. He didn't care if the yakuza knew he was a hanyou, in fact, that might help. They would probably be more worried about him now and either leave them alone or at least go after him first. Inuyasha knew the former was wishful thinking though. He then looked towards the house were he could see that Kagome's mother and father had seen the fight. Her father seemed to be surprised. Inuyasha remember that the man didn't know he was a hanyou yet. He watched as Mrs. Higurashi led her husband away from the window. She was probably going to explain everything to him. Meanwhile Inuyasha noticed he still had the other guy here. "I'm going to get rid of this, guy," Inuyasha told Kagome, "I don't want to leave him here." Before she could say anything, Inuyasha grabbed the guy and ran off. 

10 minutes later, Inuyasha returned to the shrine. He had tossed the guy in an alley. He noticed that Kagome was still outside and waiting for him to return. Kagome saw him return and was happy but she knew she had to talk to him. "Are you sure about this, Inuyasha? Those men have a lot of friends and now because you've stepped in the way, there going to try and kill you."

"Don't worry, Kagome," he said as he stood right in front of her, "now they'll come after me instead of your father. Everything will be alright. I'll always protect you." With that he leaned in and kissed Kagome to get her mind off her fears. She quickly forgot what she was talking with him about and kissed him back.

*****

Kagome and Inuyasha didn't seem to have a care in the world but they didn't notice a pair of red eyes watching them from a rooftop almost a block away. "You really think you can fight the yakuza all by yourself, Inuyasha. You have no idea what you are up against," the man said as his just beyond should length black hair blew in the wind. "In time, you'll find out. Enjoy your peaceful times now. They won't last much longer." With that, they man disappeared out of sight.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Don't you just love that. I end it with a small cliffhanger of the knew mystery guy. But who is he? I'll tell you this: His name will be revealed in a few chapters but that doesn't really tell you WHO HE IS. You'll have to wait longer for that. This is now the Action/Adventure part of the story, which I'm going to love writing. Next chapter though doesn't have that in it. Maybe some fluff, if I like you guys enough. and the only way I'll do that is if you like me enough (to review). lol. Well now for a referral:

**_Forgotten Snow_** by _sleep walking chicken and HAP_ - storyid=1646380 If your used to the kind of stories were IY and Kag are dating. IY does something wrong and tries to get Kag back. Your looking in the wrong place. This is the exact opposite. Only problem is that its still uncomplete.

Well that about ends it for this chapter. Once again I'm typing this at 3AM but at least its Sat. tomorrow. But I have a ton of homework. Damn teachers. Well I hope you enjoy your weekend. come back next time for:

**Chapter 24: Midoriko's Gift** - Yes you'll find out what it is and like I said some possible fluff. No guarantees though.


	25. Chapter 24 Midoriko's Gift

Well everyone, I'm sorry about this being a day late but I kind of got swamped with Math homework. Not to mention because of bad weather, I came close to killing myself while driving. My car did a 810 degree spin while coming around a turn down a mountain. My luck held up though as nothing bad happened. Not even crashing my car but it did bum me out the rest of the day and put me in no mood to write. But I'm back to my oldself, I'm even a little happy cause I now have a cable modem. I'll mention this again before the story starts and maybe at the end but if anyone ever wants to chat with me online, I only use AIM and can find me under IM name: spiderfan13. 

**_shiroryu of the moon_** - Well the fluff just seems to come to me as I write. I did happen to read one of your stories, "Arms Wide Open." I must say you did a great job on that.

**_LadyJynjr_** - Wow, took you three hours to read my entire story. Well I'm glad you decided to read it and I'm also glad you liked it. And yes, the Yakuza = Japanese mafia

**_exsanguination_** - actually you didn't make yourself look like an ass. the Yakuza is pretty much a Japanese mafia or gang.

**_DarkAnimeChick_** - Thank you for reviewing for practically every chapter of my story within one day. I'm glad you like it and I hope you enjoy what's to come. As for the mystery man, you'll have to wait and see.

**Mystery man/ new guy** - well everyone seems to enjoy making guesses as to who the guy is. Some people just ask me right out who but do you really think I'm going to tell. I said before, about 2-3 chapters down the line will learn more but not enough. I'm thinking this story has about 10 chapters or so left and about halfway we'll find out everything about this guy.

Okay a few final things before I start the chapter. I know I said there would be the possibility of fluff in this chapter but you won't find it. As a matter of fact, its the exact opposite. Also some people have been asking me to read and review their stories. If you ask this, I will goto your profile and read the summary. If I don't find it too interesting, I probably won't read it cause I really don't have much time anymore between this and school. If its a small oneshot I'll usually check it out. If its longer and interesting, it depends on if I'm free, if I'm not I'll usually bookmark and come back to it. If your story has Kagome pair with anyone other than IY, I won't read it. Sorry I'm just like that. I also said I'd re-mention this: if anyone wants to chat with me on AIM just message: spiderfan13. Okay now enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: My new cable modem gives me great power but not enough to own Inuyasha. Sorry

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 24: Midoriko's Gift

It was just the previous night when Kagome found out her father was alive once again only to be hunted by yakuza. Inuyasha had easily beaten them and sent them away with a warning. Hopefully they wouldn't be back but Inuyasha doubted that. The fight had woken up Souta and Kagome's grandfather who then found out about Mr. Higurashi. They all decided to call it a night and go to sleep. There was a small argument as Inuyasha demanded to sleep in Kagome's room to protect her while her father thought otherwise. Luckily Kagome's mother intervened and convinced her husband that it was alright and Inuyasha wouldn't try anything.

It was now about noon as Inuyasha sat at the Higurashi table and groaned. With Kagome and her mother's help, they had explained about Kagome's adventures within the past 2 years. Unfortunately though, they had to explain it almost 3 times before he full understood everything.

"So you're actually a hanyou from the Feudal Era?" Mr. Higurashi asked.

"Yes," Inuyasha said. "Please tell me you understand everything now. I don't think I can tell this again."

"I think I got everything," he replied.

"Good, I'm going outside. I need to stretch," Inuyasha said as he walked outside. Kagome's father followed him. When he got outside, Inuyasha was already stretching out and jumping around a bit to get the stiffness out of his muscles.

"Inuyasha, I want to apologize for last night," he told Inuyasha, who just looked at him a little confused. "I should have known you wouldn't try anything with Kagome especially after being so willing to protect me and my family. It seems everyone really likes you particularly Kagome." Inuyasha just blushed a little at this but tried to hide it. "Ever since, I saw that young man die I've been a bit paranoid. The fact that you were part demon was what had me mistrusting you. I'm sorry about that. I should have trusted you and thank you for protecting my family."

"Don't worry about it. I've gotten used to not being accepted because of being a hanyou," Inuyasha told him flat out. "As for your family, I'm not about to let anyone hurt Kagome, whether it's physically or emotionally."

"Well I'm not saying that I didn't accept you, just last night I didn't trust you but I was wrong. I'm glad you're here," Mr. Higurashi told him. "You know from what I heard about you this morning, I wouldn't think that you're usually this open with people."

"I'm not," Inuyasha said slightly angry because he didn't happen to notice what he had been saying.

"That's Kagome's doing," he told the hanyou. "She has a way of getting to people. I see it took 2 years for her to soften you up."

"Feh," came Inuyasha's reply. "I guess, I'll head back inside." Without saying more, Inuyasha walked back in the house. When he walked in he noticed that Kagome was no where around. Following her scent he realized she went back to her room. As he got close to the door he could hear her groaning. He quickly hurried in, "What's wrong?"

Kagome jumped from the seat at her desk as Inuyasha rushed in. She then turned at him angry. "You scared the hell out of me!" she yelled at him. "Why the hell did you come rushing in here like that?"

"Because I heard a groan and I thought something might be wrong. Forgive me for worrying!" Inuyasha yelled back. "What the hell was wrong?"

"Since I spent most of the last 2 years in the feudal era rather than school, I'm quite a bit behind. I barely passed last year so I'm trying to spend this last month before school starts to learn the stuff I don't know or remember," Kagome told him. "I've been trying this problem for the last 10 minutes and I can't get it. That's what has me angry."

Inuyasha didn't know what to say so he just walked over and watched Kagome work at the problem again. When she finished she checked her answer and once again it was wrong. "Argh, is this damn school against me. I just can't do this!" Kagome yelled at no one in particular. 

Inuyasha looked at what she had written. "I see what you problem is," Inuyasha told her. "Alternate interior angles are congruent not complementary."

"What?!?" Kagome asked him dumbstruck.

"In other words, these angles are equal. They don't add up to 90 degrees," He told her simply.

"I understood what you said; I just want to know how you know it. I've never known you to know basic algebra, let alone geometry." Kagome told him.

"I didn't know it before," Inuyasha said not totally sure. Just then Inuyasha remembered something. 

"_You'll know when the time comes._" He'd been told that by Midoriko.

"_She couldn't have_," Inuyasha thought to himself. He then quickly turned his attention to the problem that Kagome had been working on. He picked up the pencil and started to work it out. He wasn't totally how sure but he found himself knowing how to do the problem. In just over a minute, he finished the problem. 

Kagome just watched him work out the problem. When she saw him finish, she checked the answer. Sure enough he had gotten the right answer. "How?" was all Kagome could manage.

"I'm not totally sure but I think this was the gift Midoriko gave me," Inuyasha said. He then got up and had an evil grin on his face. "Now not only am I stronger than you but I'm smarter than you as well," Inuyasha teased.

Kagome got angry at his taunting. "Just because you got one problem right doesn't mean much. I bet you can't do it again," Kagome challenged. Inuyasha accepted and Kagome gave him a much harder problem though Inuyasha solved it with ease. Kagome then gave him another but Inuyasha had no problem. Then she tried some of her other subjects from school. He seemed to know them as well. The more and more questions Inuyasha got asked, the more he got right and the more he teased Kagome about it. Finally after asking him a chemistry question and he answered correctly, she had had it with his tease, "Inuyashaaaa…" she seemed to groan out. "SIT!!"

Inuyasha braced himself for the impact but surprisingly it never came. He looked at Kagome a little weird. "Shoot!" she yelled, "I forgot that the disguise overrides the subduing spell."

Though Kagome said the last part under her breath, Inuyasha could still hear it. "I'm free. No more being smashed into the ground," Inuyasha would have jumped for joy if the room had been big enough. Inuyasha then decided to continue his teasing, "You can't sit me anymore. You can't sit me anymore."

Kagome's anger just continued to increase. Without have the subduing spell to shut him up, she decided she need to do it the old fashion way. She stood behind him and pushed him towards the door. When he was practically through the door way Inuyasha said back, "You know I'm stronger so I could have easily stopped you from pushing me."

With one last growl, Kagome just shoved him as hard as she could out into the hallway and slammed the door to her room closed. "STAY OUT!!" she yelled.

*****

Midoriko gave a small giggle as she patrolled the village with Sango. Sango heard her and turned to her, "What's so funny, Midoriko?" Over the past two weeks Midoriko had finally gotten Sango and Miroku to talk to her like a normal person rather than some great legend.

"Nothing much, just that no matter how much knowledge Inuyasha ever has, I don't think he'll ever have any common sense," Midoriko told her.

"I agree," Sango said with a laugh, "but what makes you bring that up."

"Well it seems that Inuyasha has discovered his gift that I gave him. Needless to say, it's swelled his ego and that has made Kagome angry at him."

"I could have seen that coming but how did you know that?" Sango asked her.

"If you remember my soul spent 15 years in Kagome body, so I have a bit of a link with her. I also have a link with Inuyasha since he made the wish on the jewel. Its nothing big like I can't tell you what he's doing right now but I can sense some things." Midoriko told Sango. "I also have a small link with you and Miroku because of the hunting for jewel shards. It's just that you link is a bit weaker. Not to mention, I don't need it since you're both here in the village."

"So what was the gift you gave Inuyasha?" Sango asked.

"Well I knew that eventually Kagome would go back to school in her time and that would leave Inuyasha to sit at her house with nothing to do for about 8 hours. I didn't want him to become bored so I gave him the knowledge I learned from being around Kagome when she went to school. That way he'll be able to go with her," Midoriko said. "I should really teach you some of the stuff I learned from her time, it's rather fascinating."

"I would definitely like that and you never know how useful it could be," Sango said as they continued they're patrol.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well now you all know the gift that Midoriko gave IY. I said it wouldn't be big but it would help him. Well I decided to end it there. I know its a little short but I wanted the fight in the next chapter. The make up is also going to be in the next chapter. If you can't tell by the title of the next chapter, I'm making that one into a song chapter. I'm going to make the song Karaoke. I know some said background and I said I couldn't please everyone but I might have another song chapter with the song in the background. As for what song I'll use next chapter, I know what one but I'm not gonna tell. I'll give you guys some hints. No one has guess it so far. It was sung by one man, who had just happened to break up with his band. Even though he was with them for quite a while they replaced him. Anyway it also was part of the soundtrack to a movie. I believe the song and movie came out at about the same time which was mid 80s. I'm sorry I really like 80s music but that doesn't mean I don't listen to newer stuff. Now for my referral:

  
**_From Friendship to Love_** by _Inuyasha's Princess17_ storyid=1473309 really nice story. It becomes a little angsty towards the end but it isn't over yet and I'm expecting a happy ending.

  
Well that's about it for this chapter. Once again feel free to message me, Spiderfan13, anytime on AIM. Well its almost 4 AM so I'm going to bed. Come back next time for: 

**Chapter 25: A Song From the Heart**


	26. Chapter 25 A Song From the Heart

Well, I've finally written the song chapter. You know after driving home from school yesterday I thought of an idea and decided to add to the story. There's going to be another song chapter - right after this one. I hope you guys like it.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - At this point, IY doesn't have the common sense to know anything about parenting. Besides IY doesn't know everything just stuff pertaining to school. As for you B-day countdown, if your going to do one they I should as well. I have 17 days left until my 20th birthday. Congrats all around.

**_Fukashi_** - I could have a real fun debate about Inuyasha's father, Inutaisho. I aware that it means "dog leader" but that doesn't mean that isn't his name. If you look at Inuyasha, Inuyasha is his name but it also translates to dog-demon or dog-spirit so that doesn't mean that Inutaisho isn't Inuyasha's father's name. As for the subtitles, sometimes they get too literal. If I remember correctly when Naraku's name is mentioned they have it subtitled 'spider-hanyou' or something along those lines. You can't take all subtitles to literal. 

**_Angel Nicole_** - Sorry I keep meaning to answer your question but I keep forgetting. I haven't written any other IY fanfics but I may write more after this one. We'll see.

**_Black Dragon_** - yes I'm aware that the IY going to school has been done before but I really don't care about school. I'm only going to show a few things from it and that's it. The school thing is just a means to an end.

Okay well not much more to say. I'm surprised that reviews have been going down a bit. I hope people aren't getting bored or anything with my story. Also as I mentioned, IY is going to go to school but I really don't care about that. I'm not going to go into much detail other than the things that pertains to the story. Its just a means to an end. I hope everyone likes the song I picked out. No one so far was able to figure out the song or artist. Hopefully you'll realize it. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY or the song I'm going to use.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 25: A Song From the Heart  


Kagome came down from her room after an hour of doing more school work. She still wasn't in a good mood. Nothing seemed to be going right. She was still having a lot of trouble with the work and was even thinking about asking Inuyasha for help but that would just remind her of his teasing. She didn't want to give him more to tease her about. After an hour she decided to take a break and get something to eat. She walked into the kitchen where her mother and Inuyasha was. He was eating some ramen. She didn't feel like making something so some instant ramen sounded nice. When she opened the cupboard, she found no ramen. "Mom, did you move the ramen?" Kagome asked.

"No, I believe Inuyasha just finished it," she said as she watched Inuyasha place his instant cup in the garbage.

"Put just yesterday there was like 20," she then turned to Inuyasha who still had his smirk from before. "You ate all the ramen in practically two days?!"

"Not all," he said cockily. "I believe your father had one and so did Souta."

"That's still 18 cups of ramen," Kagome half groaned and half yelled. "You are so stupid."

"No, if you remember I'm even smarter than you," Inuyasha teased some more. If he had any common sense, he would have known that Kagome was in no mood for his taunts.

"That's only because Midoriko decided to give you some actual brains. She probably felt bad for you since you had none," Kagome yelled back at him.

"I had a brain, I couldn't live without one," Inuyasha said trying to show off his new knowledge.

"Then it mustn't have been working before. Well I have more studying to do since I have to memorize the stuff the old fashion way unlike you who cheats and just has all the knowledge," Kagome said.

"Hey don't call me a cheater. I didn't cheat. Midoriko gave me the knowledge as a gift fair and square," Inuyasha said with a smirk. "It's not my fault if I'm both stronger and smarter than you."

"You're not necessarily smarter than me. You need more than facts to truly be intelligent!" she yelled at him.

"You just saying that cause you know I'm smarter," Inuyasha said but that he had pushed Kagome to her breaking point.

"Argh, you are such a pain in the ass! I don't know why I agreed to let you stay here. All you do is annoy me!" she yelled at him. Kagome was so mad at him by that point that she didn't see the full effect of her words on him. If she would have been calm she would have been able to see the hurt in his eyes.

She couldn't see it but she was about to hear it. "Fine, if my presence annoys you that much then I'll leave. I like my world much better than this one! The only thing good about being here was the ramen!" Inuyasha yelled as he stomped towards the door. "Have fun with the yakuza!" With that he slammed the door shut and quickly went over to the well house and jumped in the well.

Kagome was still angry at Inuyasha so his leaving didn't fully affect her yet though given enough time it would. Instead of going after him and calling for him to call back, she charged back up to her room.

Kagome's mother continued doing the dishes as if nothing had happened. It was then Mr. Higurashi walked back into the house. "This doesn't look good. They were getting along so well," he said.

"Don't worry," his wife told him. "You'd be surprised how often they fought over the last two years. They always make up. It's just a lover's quarrel." With that she smiled widely and turned back to her cleaning. He just looked at her a little confused and went back outside to play more with Souta.

*****

Kaede was getting annoyed. Inuyasha had shown up at her hut almost 3 hours ago. The entire time he had been complaining about Kagome and her being jealous. She wasn't sure how much more she could stand. "Inuyasha, have you ever thought that this might actually be your fault," Kaede told him. "I know ye don't t like to admit it but isn't it possible?"

"No, Kagome's just being jealous," Inuyasha said.

"Well think if ye position's were reversed. If ye didn't have the knowledge you did and she was smarter and then all of a sudden she became stronger than ye," Kaede told him. "I know your pride would be hurt especially if she went around rubbing it in your face."

"She wouldn't rub it in my face," Inuyasha said back.

"Exactly," Kaede told him. "All this time and probably still, Kagome has been smarter than you and other than calling you an idiot for doing stupid things she hasn't said anything about it. She's never once said that she was smarter than you. You might have just done some small teasing but I'm sure you did it enough to annoy her. Just like ye are annoying me by constantly complaining."

"Feh, whatever," Inuyasha said as he stood up. "I'm going for a walk." Inuyasha walked out of the hut and Kaede didn't really expect him to come back especially since she noticed he was walking in the direction of the well. As Inuyasha walked through the forest, he realized that both Kaede and Kagome were right. Now that he had calmed down and his ego was back to normal he realized his mistake. He knew that Kagome probably didn't mean what she had said about not wanting him there but he was going to apologize all the same. He didn't want to just leave her without any protection from the yakuza. He laughed for a small bit, "_Fate is really ironic. All the time Kagome was coming back here, when we had our fights she usually came back and apologized. Now the situation is reversed and I'm the one whose going to apologize_," Inuyasha thought to himself. This fight had taught him a lesson. Kagome was still smarter than him, she had common sense. He was getting there; in fact, he had learned the most important lesson of common sense. Don't piss off a woman, who's already angry.

*****

Within a matter of minutes, Inuyasha was back in Kagome's time. He jumped right up to her window and crawled in there expecting to find her doing more school work. There was nothing but an empty room to greet him. From her scent, she had been here an hour ago. He then walked out and descended the stairs to try and find her. At the bottom of the steps, he saw Kagome's mom relaxing from doing chores. "Hey, where's Kagome at?" Inuyasha asked her.

"Ohh, Inuyasha I didn't see you come in," Mrs. Higurashi said. "Some of Kagome's friends stopped by and took Kagome to the mall." She had known Kagome had left depressed and by the looks of it Inuyasha was feeling bad about before as well. "If you want, I could give you a ride to the mall?"

"That's okay, I know where it is. Kagome gave me a tour of the city the other day. It's just that it's so big I won't know where to beginning looking for Kagome," Inuyasha said.

"Well that's easy enough. Just look in the clothing stores. Her and her friends are usually in one of them," she told Inuyasha. He smiled at her and was about to leave before she called out to him. "Inuyasha, you might want to change clothes. Yesterday I bought you some modern day clothes so you could have them. I put them up in Kagome's room right by her bed."

Inuyasha then realized that he was still wearing his fire-rat haori. People might look at him a little weird if he continued to wear it. "Thank you," Inuyasha said as he rushed upstairs and changed clothes. 

When he came back downstairs, Kagome's mom stopped him again. "Here," she said handing him some money. "If you're hungry, you can buy something to eat." Inuyasha nodded and quickly left. 

*****

Within 5 minutes Inuyasha had reached the mall. He had cheated and ran atop the buildings. He had to admit modern clothes were pretty good. They could be a little more restricting but when trying to run fast they provided less wind resistance than his haori. As he walked into the mall, he was astounded by the amount of people. When Kagome showed it to him before, there were a lot less people. He definitely wouldn't be able to pick up Kagome's scent. So he did it the old fashion way, by walking around and looking. He slowly walked around looking for her but also taking in everything in the mall. He had been looking for half an hour and been to almost every clothing store. He was starting to worry that she had already left. Finally he caught sight of her and her friends going into one of last stores he hadn't checked. "_Figures, she'd be in the last one_," Inuyahsa thought as he quickly made his way over to the store that Kagome disappeared into. 

Right before he went in a girl popped up in front of him. "Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha looked at her and realized it was Ayumi, one of Kagome's friends. "Hey, I'm looking for Kagome."

"I figured," she said. "She told us about the fight you guys had and she's been totally bummed out. We thought bringing her here would cheer her up but it hasn't helped." Ayumi then heard something, she turned her head and saw what she heard. She then got a really good idea. "Hey Inuyasha, I figure you hear to apologize?"

"What if I am?" Inuyasha asked not wanting his pride to be hurt.

"Well Kagome might be a little happy to see you but she might not totally forgive you yet," Ayumi said and Inuyasha's face fell a little. "But I have a really good idea and if you do it I'm sure she'll forgive you. Are you willing to do it?"

"I guess," Inuyasha said unsure what he was getting himself into. Ayumi then led him to another place that was slightly down from the clothing shop. He didn't recognize the place or what it was for. "So what do I have to do?"

Ayumi was surprised that he didn't know what this was. "This is a place where you can do karaoke." She became even more surprised as when he still looked at her confused. "It's a place where they play a song and you can sing with it. Understand?"

"So you want me to sing a song?" Inuyasha said confused. "How's that going to get Kagome to forgive me?"

"Well they have a lot of songs here and you could probably look through them. Find a song that you could specifically sing to Kagome. I'm sure she'll forgive you after that." Inuyasha wasn't totally sure he was up to this but if it was sure to get Kagome to forgive him then he'd do it. Ayumi quickly led Inuyasha to a book of songs and lyrics so that he could pick on out. "Okay, listen just talk to the employee and tell him you want to sing a song. I'll get Kagome to come here. I'll try and stall her for about 5-10 minutes to give you time to choose a song, okay?"

Inuyasha nodded. He could hear Kagome's other friends calling out for Ayumi as if she got lost. He then continued to search through the book. Finally he seemed to find a song that would work great. It didn't exactly say the words 'I'm sorry' but he could say that before he started the song.

*****

Kagome and her three friends walked out of the last shop in the mall. Kagome was tired and wanted to go home. Not just to rest but she also wanted to see if Inuyasha came back. She hoped he had and if he didn't she decided that she'd go to the feudal era and get him "_Talk about role-reversal. Inuyasha was always dragging me back to the feudal era_," Kagome thought to herself. "Well, I'm just about out of money and I'm tired. I wanna head back home," Kagome told her friends.

Eri and Yuka seemed to agree with her but Ayumi seemed to disagree. "I want to go one last place before we leave," she told them.

"Where?" Eri asked.

"I want to go the karaoke," she told them.

"I didn't know you like karaoke," Kagome said.

"Well I don't totally but I like to sit and watch the people sing. Some are really good," she told her friend. She had to get Kagome to go or else her plan would fail. "Just one song, please?"

The other three girls sighed. "Fine but just one song," Kagome told her. They all walked into the place where a girl was already up doing some karaoke. They could tell she was halfway through a song. About a minute and a half later, she finished. "Okay we can go now," Kagome said.

"But that wasn't one song," Ayumi said. "It was half of one."

"I'm really tired. I wanna go home and sleep," Kagome said. "Besides there's no good singers here…" Kagome was cut off as she heard a voice come from the speakers.

"Before I begin, I just want to say I'm sorry to my girlfriend." Kagome turned around to see Inuyasha in front with the microphone. "I was stupid earlier today and I'm hoping that she can forgive me for being such a jerk. This song is for her." With that Inuyasha looked directly at her and started to sing the song.

Tonight it's very clear  
As we're both lying here  
There's so many things I want to say  
I will always love you  
I would never leave you alone   
  
Sometimes I just forget  
Say things I might regret  
It breaks my heart to see you crying  
I don't wanna lose you  
I could never make it alone 

"_That's true_," Inuyasha thought. "_I always seem to say things I regret and it makes you cry but I can't live without you_."**  
  
I am a man who will fight for your honor  
I'll be the hero you're dreaming of  
We'll live forever  
Knowing together that we  
Did it all for the glory of love   
  
You'll keep me standing tall  
You'll help me through it all  
I'm always strong when you're beside me  
I have always needed you  
I could never make it alone   
  
I am a man who will fight for your honor  
I'll be the hero you've been dreaming of  
We'll live forever  
Knowing together that we  
Did it all for the glory of love   
  
Just like a knight in shining armor  
From a long time ago  
Just in time I will save the day  
Take you to my castle far away **

Kagome had to smile at that. He had always been her knight in shining armor. He was there to protect her.**  
  
I am a man who will fight for your honor  
I'll be the hero that you're dreaming of  
We're gonna live forever  
Knowing together that we  
Did it all for the glory of love   
  
We'll live forever  
Knowing together that we  
Did it all for the glory of love   
  
We did it all for love  
We did it all for love  
We did it all for love  
We did it all for love**

Everyone clapped as Inuyasha finished but he paid them no heed. His eyes where were they had been the entire time – looking directly at Kagome. He put down the mike and walked towards her. "Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?"

Kagome looked up into his eyes. They were filled with love for her and sadness for what he had done to her. "I don't think there's any way I couldn't," she smiled as she leaned up and kissed him. Inuyasha didn't care about anyone seeing. He kissed her in return. He was glad to have her back. "_I can't believe he did this_," Kagome thought to herself while kissing him. "_It took a lot of guts for him to sing in front of everyone. I know just how to return the favor. I'll sing a song for him and I know just the one_."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well I hope you liked it. Though I didn't mention it the money IY has was used to sing that song. As for the song, here's where some trivia comes in:

**What's the title of the song?  
Who sang it?  
What movie did it go to?  
And for more fun, what band did the artist belong to?**

I hope I didn't make it to hard for you. The next chapter/song I already know. Here's your hints. Song was originally written in mid-80s and was redone in about 95. You can find an IY AMV to the newer version of the song. The original was almost 7 minutes long while the newer version was closer to 4. Well that's about all the hints I can't think of now. I hope you like it. Now for referral:

  
**_The Girl and the Band_** by _Chase storyid=1412373_

  
Well once again its 4 AM. I'm going to bed so I can actually make it to some of my classes tomorrow. Later. Come back next time for:

**Chapter 26: **(I don't know the title yet)


	27. Chapter 26 Forgiveness

Well, I'd like to thank everyone that stuck with me through the song chapter even if you didn't like it. I hope you can live through one more. I really like this song and I wanted to use it. As for the song from the last chapter: its was Glory of Love, which went to Karate Kid Part 2, was sung by Peter Cetera formerly of Chicago. I don't know anything about the remake version, I've never heard it. Speaking of remakes, the song in this chapter is a remake. Its "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Nikki French. If you decide to download this song download the 3-4 minute verion. That's the good techno remix version. Don't download the original Nikki French version, its horrible. There is an anime music video to IY with this song. Here's the link: www animemusicvideos org /members/members_videoinfo.php?v=4915 I hope you like the video as well as this chapter. Congrats to Koneko-chan star, Selcryn, Lady Fae, I love your story, sachi, and Haru for guessing the song. All of you were right. Congrats.

**_Sango13_** - Actually it isn't my birthday yet, I'll be 20 on Feb. 8th. 

**_Silver Warrior_** - I know its kind of poetic and IY is OOC but I really wanted to do it not to mention as I said Kagome has been changing IY over the past 2 years. So there's a chance and he really wanted to make up with her. IY can be a nice guy if he tries.

**_Sunstreak_** - I didn't take your reveiw as sucking up so don't worry. As for daddy's little angel, if you happen to look at the reviews for her story, If Hearts were Unbreakable, you'll see I've been reading her story and its good. I know there are stories out there like it but that happens a lot. Everything has been done before its just how you build onto the idea that makes it original. Also after talking through reviews with her, we're on good terms now. 

Okay everyone like I said this is another song chapter (probably last one). It uses "Total Eclipse of the Heart (Techno Remix)" by Nikki French. The song was originally done by Bonnie Tyler in the mid 80s. What can I say I'm a fan of 80s music. Please don't complain about it being short. I just wanted to add the song in not to mention the last chapter was longer than usual so it evens out. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY, or Total Eclipse of the Heart.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 26: Forgiveness  


Kagome looked up into Inuyasha's eyes and saw the love that they held. "Thank you, Inuyasha. That was a wonderful song. I know how hard it must have been for you to do it," Kagome said to her love.

Inuyasha looked straight her. "I would have done anything to get you to forgive me," Inuyasha said as he gave her a quick kiss. His usual smirk then appeared on his face, "Just don't expect me to do it again."

"Hey are you two done yet?" Eri asked ruining the moment. "Just a little while ago, I remember someone complaining that they wanted to go home?" Ayumi wanted to hit her friend for interrupting a nice heart filled scene.

"Well, I'm not in that much of a hurry," Kagome told them. "There's still one thing I want to do." With that Kagome turned to Inuyasha, "This is my way of saying I forgive you, as well as I'm sorry to." With that Kagome went up to the employee of the shop. When she finished paying him she pointed to a song and then was allowed to go up on stage. She looked directly at Inuyasha as the song began.

(Turn around)  
Every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you never come around  
(Turn around)  
Every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound of my tears  
(Turn around)  
Every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of the years have gone by  
(Turn around)  
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then I see the look in your eyes  
(Turn around) 

Every now and then I fall apart. Every now and then I fall apart  
  
And I need you now tonight  
and I need you more than ever  
and if you only hold me tight  
we'll be holding on forever  
and we'll only be making it right  
Cause we'll never be wrong, together   
  
Once upon a time, I was falling in love  
but now I'm only falling apart  
there's nothing I can do  
a total eclipse of the heart   
  
(Turn around)

Every now and then I know you'll never be the boy you always wanted to be  
(Turn around)

But every now and then I know you'll always be the only boy who wanted me the way that I am  
(Turn around)

Every now and then I know there's no one in the universe as magical and wondrous as you  
(Turn around)

Every now and then I know there's nothing any better and there's nothing I just couldn't do  
(Turn around) bright eyes, Every now and then I fall apart  
(Turn around) bright eyes, Every now and then I fall apart  
  
And I need you now tonight  
And I need you more than ever  
And if you'll only hold me tight  
We'll be holding on forever  
And we'll only be making it right  
Cause we'll never be wrong together  
We can take it to the end of the line  
Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time!  
I don't know what to do and I'm always in the dark  
We're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks!  
I really need you tonight!  
Forever's gonna start tonight  
Forever's gonna start tonight  
  
Once upon a time I was falling in love  
But now I'm only falling apart  
Nothing I can do  
A total eclipse of the heart

  
Once upon a time I was falling in love  
but now I'm only falling apart  
Nothing I can do  
A total eclipse of the heart

Inuyasha just continued to stare at Kagome as she came off the stage and directly towards him. Neither of them heard all the praise that Kagome was receiving. "That was great, Kagome," Inuyasha told her.

"Thank you. I did it for you," Kagome said.

"I'm glad," Inuyasha said. "I take it that you forgive me?"

"Not yet," Kagome said with a grin. "There's one last thing I want you to do for me. I want you to admit that my singing was better than you."

Inuyasha was surprised at this. He thought he had earned her forgiveness but he could understand her request not to mention that she was right. He had rubbed being better than her in her face so now this was a sort of payback. "I'm not sure if I'd say that," Inuyasha said with a smirk as he brought his face closer to Kagome's. She looked at him a little surprised. She wanted to hear him admit it. "You sang like an angel compared to me," Inuyasha said and kissed her passionately on the lips.

"Promise me you won't leave me, even if we do get into a fight," Kagome said.

"You have my word on that. I don't want anything to ever happen to you," Inuyasha said.

A cough came from near the two lovers. They turned around to see not only Kagome's friends but everyone else around looking at them. "You guys are making a bit of a scene," Yuka said. Kagome and Inuyasha blushed a bit.

"Have you two made up?" Eri asked. Inuyasha and Kagome looked at each other then nodded. "Good then we can go home now." With that the group slowly made their way out of the Karaoke shop and out of the mall.

None noticed the man that was sitting on a bench right outside the Karaoke shop. Through his red eyes he had watched the entire scene as it had unfolded. "_You're lucky you two are back together. Soon enough your going to need all the help you can get_." the man thought. "_You only have a little bit of peaceful time left before yakuza come to kill you. We'll meet before that though_." With that the man got up and walked out of the mall. There was no need to follow Kagome and Inuyasha, he knew well enough where they lived.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's another done. If you couldn't absolutely tell, the man at the end is the same man as before. I'm sure everyone is wondering about him. That's is what the next chapter is for. You'll meet the man but I warn you just because you're given a name doesn't mean you really know the person. That surprise is coming later. Okay one trivia question this time:

**Who wrote the original version of Total Eclipse of the Heart?**

He's one of my favorite song writers and made some of the best songs that I listen to. Okay now for a referral: 

  
**_Oh My Love, How I Loathe You_** by Jaive storyid=1585365

Well that's gonna do it for this chapter. Hope to see you next time for:

**Chapter 27: Back to School** - as I said school is just a means to an end. And Mystery man named.


	28. Chapter 27 Back to School

Well I'd like to start off this chapter by apologizing. I wanted to get this chapter out yesterday but because of 3 quizzes and school work, I was unable to do so. This also means, I have to wish a Belated Birthday to Takerus Lost Angel. I wanted to get it out on time so it wouldn't be belated but I hope you'll accept it just the same. Now everyone was wondering about the mystery man. You'll get a bit of an answer in this chapter but it won't really tell you what you want to know. I will tell you this, one person out there is on to something though I won't say who. 

Also I'm surprised no one got my little trivia question. The person who wrote Total Eclipse of the Heart was Jim Steinman. He also wrote both Bat Out of Hell CDs for MeatLoaf. And more recently wrote, It's All Coming Back to Me Now by Celine Dion.

**_ob_** - If you look back a few chapters, you'll see I mentioned the shortness of the chapters and why its like that. As for getting them out quicker. As it is, I try to update every other day and I usually do so I think that's fast enough.

**_darkinuyasha_** - yeah I know there's been quite a bit of fluff but drama isn't just fighting, its both. There will actually be no fight for about 2 more chapters but from practically there on out its going to be fun.

**_giggles19701_** - I hope your eyes are feeling better. I know what its like to sit and read a story for hours. I've done it on **many** occasions. As for Kagura, it was mention that in the fight with Naraku, she escaped. So she's alive.

**_Phoenix Archangel_** - I know they're a bit OOC but with my trusty author's license *holds out regular paper with own writing that says it a license* I can do what I want with my story. lol. I really like Total Eclipse of the Heart as well. As for my biasness, I wouldn't say it's biased. The thing is when I read a story I visualize it as well especially my own. But with ones that have Kag/Sess I just can't imagine it. I know there are probably some really good stories out there with that couple but I just can't bring myself to read them. For IY, I don't mind other pairs such as Sango/Inuyasha, I found that I don't mind this pair. I just can't stand for him to be paired with Kikyo.

**_FukashiOni_** - Okay, I need to say a few things here. First off, I know my grammar is wrong in many places. I don't proofread my story not to mention I hate English. I may be in college but I still suck at grammar. Please don't point out any more of my mistakes cause I really don't care about them. As for IY singing, I know that was OOC but it is my story and I couldn't resist to have him sing that song. I'm also aware that there were many demons in the cave with Midoriko. But the others were weak, the main one was a combination of demons and that was the powerful one. As for watching sub or dub, I watch both. I saw the first 35 episodes dubbed and from there on out I've watched subbed. In the later episodes you really don't hear Kaede say much and even if she did I wasn't paying attention for the 'ye' stuff. I just like putting it in there. 

**_Simply a Lady_** - if you didn't take notice I did mention that Bonnie Tyler sung the original version of "Total Eclipse of the Heart" but it was written by Jim Steinman. If you didn't read the note you made a good guess. 

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - As I mentioned above unless you missed it. Happy Belated Birthday.

**_Darkmoon_** - You may be a high school student but you write really well. I very much like your story and can't wait for the next chapter. I hope you didn't get in trouble by writing the review at 2 AM. If you wrote that at 2 AM, I'm writing this almost an hour after you sent it. As for red eye guy, just wait and see. Lastly about the fluff and me being a guy, don't try to explain it. I don't know how I do it myself. 

Well that's about it. This chapter does have some last names it in. I didn't assign a last name for Inuyasha. Do you guys think I should? I've always been afraid that it'd take away from the original anime.

Disclaimer: I stole Inuyasha and was going to give him to Takerus Lost Angel for her B-day but lawyers came and took him away before I could gift wrap him. Also for reparations, I have to not only say that Rumiko Takahashi owns him but give her a small part in my story. Here goes:

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 27: Back to School  


The month seemed to fly by for Kagome and Inuyasha. Surprisingly the yakuza didn't seem to try anything. It started to make Inuyasha think he really scared them off. Kagome worried but usually had her mind elsewhere as she studied for school. She was at first scared that she couldn't make it through her final year in high school but she was relieved when her mother decided to enroll Inuyasha in her school as well. Mr. Higurashi was still a little nervous about the yakuza but he spent most of his time with his family especially Souta who he really hadn't known much.

Kagome slowly opened her eyes and groaned. She looked at her alarm clock and saw that it was 7:15. She picked up the clock and threw it to the ground. She didn't want to get up for school but she knew she had to. Fifteen minutes later she was back in her bedroom after getting a shower. It wasn't until then that she remembered Inuyasha was going with her. She had forgotten to wake him up. As she looked around her room she noticed that he wasn't there. She quickly dressed and ran downstairs to ask her mom. "Mama, have you seen…" he question stopped as she walked into the dining room the see Inuyasha at the table eating breakfast. "You awake?" Kagome asked. 

"Yeah, is it so hard to believe?" he asked her with food in his mouth as he continued eating.

"Disgusting! Swallow before you talk," Kagome reprimanded him. He only stuck out his tongue in response. "_I guess it isn't hard to believe that he's awake. He always was an early riser_," Kagome thought as she remembered being woken up at the crack of dawn.

Inuyasha just watched her as she started to daze off. "So are we going to go to school or not. It's not big deal to me," Inuyasha said. He really didn't care about school this was just a way to spend more time with Kagome. When Mrs. Higurashi signed him up for school she made it that he had the same classes as Kagome since he didn't know his way around the building. 

"Ah, I keep forgetting. Just when you start to get used to summer break, you have to go back to school," Kagome said as she grabbed some toast and ran to get her backpack. Inuyasha just followed her.

"Have fun at school," Mrs. Higurashi yelled to them.

Right before Kagome walked out the door, someone called to her. "Kagome!" she turned around to see her father descending the stairs. He smiled as he walked to her. "It's been such a long time since I've seen you leave for school. You look just like you did before," he said with a smile.

"Thanks dad," Kagome said. She gave him a quick hug and turned to leave.

"Be careful out there. Even if Inuyasha is with you, you know I'll still worry," he told his daughter.

"I will," Kagome said quickly and ran out the door with Inuyasha not far behind. If they didn't hurry they would be late. Their run slowed into a walk as they met up with Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. "Hey you guys," Kagome said welcoming her friends.

"Hey Kagome," they all replied. Then they noticed Inuyasha. "You're going to school too Inuyasha?" Yuka asked.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied. "I didn't feel like sitting at home all day," Though the shrine wasn't actually his home, he had gotten used to calling it that.

Before they knew it they had reached the courtyard of the school. Inuyasha had been here before but only on the top and the sides of the building. This would be the first time he would actually know the inside as well. "So where did you go to school before you came here?" Eri asked.

Inuyasha and Kagome were a bit surprised by that question. Kagome hadn't thought up an excuse for that yet. As luck would have it though, the school bell rang. Kagome quickly whisked Inuyasha into the school away from her friends. They luckily made it to homeroom before the late bell. Kagome and Inuyasha walked up to the teacher and explained about him being new. The teacher nodded in approval. He told Kagome to take her seat but Inuyasha was to wait. As the late bell rang, the room came to silence and everyone looked forward to the teacher and the boy at the front of the room. "Okay everyone. Welcome back from your summer break. As I'm sure you can tell, we have a new student this year. Please introduce yourself and tell us something about you."

Everyone just seemed to look to Inuyasha. He felt a little nervous with everyone watching him. "My name is Inuyasha. I just moved here. I don't know how long I'll be here but I hope to stay for a while. In the mean time, I'm staying at the Sunset Shrine," Inuyasha told them. All the girls seemed to look at Kagome, jealous that Inuyasha was staying with her.

"So where did you attend school before here?" the teacher asked.

Kagome froze at that question. What were the odds that they'd get that question twice in one day? Inuyasha though didn't freeze. "I was home-schooled," Inuyasha told them. He had to Kagome's friends for asking before. If they hadn't asked, he would have gotten worried while up in from of the class. Since they had he knew he had to think up some sort of excuse and that one seemed plausible.

One student decided to speak up and ask a question. "Why did you dye your hair gray? It makes you look like an old man," the boy said. A few kids laughed in class. He had asked it cause he was jealous that his girlfriend was one of the girls that was staring at Inuyasha.

"Reiji, that's uncalled for!" the teacher yelled at the boy.

Inuyasha though spoke up. "Actually it's not gray, it's silver. I have silver hair because it's family trait," Inuyasha told them.

The teacher then got up. "Well I think that's enough. Your seat will be to the left of Kagome," the teacher told him. Inuyasha sat down in his seat.

"Good job up there. I was afraid you'd choke," Kagome whispered to him.

"I'd never choke. I'm that good," Inuyasha boasted in return.

"You're so full of yourself," Kagome said back and turned her attention back to the teacher.

"I'm sure all of you remember as of last year Mrs. Takahashi retired from teacher. So right after homeroom, everyone will assemble in the auditorium where the new teacher will be announced." Just as he finished, the bell for the end of homeroom rang. The students quickly made their way out of the room and to the auditorium.

"Shoot," Kagome said as she and Inuyasha walked. "I scheduled her class this year because I knew she was an easy teacher and I'd get a good grade in the class. Because of all the days I missed last year, I guess I missed her announcing her retirement."

"Don't worry. I have the same class, don't I?" Inuyasha said with a smile.

"Even more fun," Kagome said sarcastically. Inuyasha growled at her. She just smiled at him. When they reached the auditorium they had to split up. Inuyasha had to stand in line with the guys while Kagome with the girls. 

Once everyone was in the auditorium, the principal made his way to the middle of the stage. "Welcome everyone. I know you enjoyed your summer vacation but now it's time to get back to work. Now as all of you know, Mrs. Takahashi, who was with us for 20 years, retired last year. This year we have a new teacher that has come to take her place. Everyone I'd like to introduce you to Tai Azuma." [Pronounce: Ah-zu-ma]

Everyone watched as a young man with short black hair walked towards the principal. He shook hands with the principal and then stood up to the microphone. "Hello everyone. My name is Tai Azuma. I just recently graduated from Tokyo University with my teaching degree. I know I can never fully replace Mrs. Takahashi but I will try my best. I will be teaching Ancient Myths and Legends. I hope to see some of you in my class," he said as he looked around.

Inuyasha didn't like this guy. It might have been because all throughout his speech the man had just continued looking around at everyone. He didn't stop for more then a second on anyone. That was until he saw Inuyasha. The man looked at him for a bit and then continued to look around. His face had stopped once more and it seemed to stop Kagome. He didn't think Kagome noticed it though. Inuyasha really didn't like this guy. He didn't like him or the look in his red eyes. It reminded him of blood.

A little while later, Kagome and Inuyasha walked out of the auditorium together. "So what's our first class?" Inuyasha asked.

Kagome looked at her schedule and then turned to Inuyasha. "Looks like we have Ancient Myths and Legends with Mr. Azuma," Kagome told him. Inuyasha didn't like it but he just hid his anger and walked with Kagome to class in silence.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well as everyone has been begging, the mystery guy has a name but as I said it didn't help you much did it. The main question is who is he? not just in name but as a person. If you can't tell he's an Original Character. Well I'm in a bit of a hurry but I do have two trivia questions:

**Do you think I should assign a last name for Inuyasha? If so, what?** (I usually don't like to do this since I think it takes away from the original anime/manga but who knows)

**In this chapter, I mention two special names: Reiji and Azuma. The name Reiji Azuma **(as a full name)**comes from interactive DVD game. What game is it?**

  
If you can get that second one, your really good. The same DVD game mention is being made into an OVA, comes out 2/27. I can't wait. Well now is time for referral and today its gonna be special (and if you like it I may stick with it) the first referral is a story. The second is an AMV that I like (technically its a parody trailer but who's counting):

  
**_I'd Trade It All_** by _Darkmoon_ storyid=1414160 I would have referred this sooner but I thought I already had. Very good story.

_Parody Anime Trailer_: **Grand Theft Bebop 2: Vice City** www animemusicvideos org /members/members_videoinfo.php?v=22533 Combines music and SFX from GTA: Vice City to Cowboy Bebop the movie. Even if your on dial up, worth the download.

  
Well I've made my suggestions. I know there should be more for me to say but I can't remember it. So just join me next time for:

**Chapter 28: Myth or Reality?**


	29. Chapter 28 Myth or Reality

Well sorry about the small hold up. Things love to keep getting in my way of writing this story. This time its school, intramural basketball, and a pain in the ass cold. I know this chapter is short and says a lot of stuff you already know but its fun that its building the suspense. To those who didn't realize this. The new teacher, Tai Azuma, is the same person that was watching IY and Kag before.

**_Stephanie_** - True, he could be a demon but what makes you think he's old? As I thought I described him like a young man. Just wondering.

**_Radhika _** - I'll see what I can do about the fluff. No promises though but trust me there will be more fluff by the time this story ends.

**_Sango13_** - About the naming of the chapters, usually I know what's going to happen in the next chapter so I have a good idea for the name and I use it. If I'm ever not sure about the next chapter, then I don't leave a name.

**_hikariko_** - Okay I won't answers the first set of questions you asked, like you said, but I will tell you this. If I put Hojo in the story it will only be a small part, nothing big. I just don't like the guy. How do you say that a person with red eyes smokes or someone around them does? I don't understand this connection. As for sleep, I do sleep but am usually lacking in it.

**_DarkInuyasha_** - I never said the red eyes sort of thing was suppose to be scary. His eyes are red for a reason. I must say it makes him stand out in the story just like its suppose to.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - You say you had a cold for you Bday. You didn't send it to me did you? I've been having really bad coughing fits lately. You did this on purpose didn't you? Just so I'd be sick on my Bday as well. lol. Well I hope you're feeling better and I hope I get better as well.

  
** Mystery Man Update** - Okay everyone seems to be asking about this. I've done a little planning and as it is now the full truth behind Tai Azuma will be revealed in 7 chapters. This is very tentative and may become longer. As it is set, all but one chapter leading up to that has a fight in it. So to break it up I might throw in a fluff chapter or two or even spend a chapter back on Miroku and Sango just to push their relationship a little farther. All the chapters leading up to the full truth will have some interesting things related to him though.

**Note about Last Chapter's Questions** - Okay, mostly everyone went with how I felt and Inuyasha will not be given a last name. This will probably go for any other story I write unless its an AU. Whenever an author writes an AU I believe it is appropriate for a last name. Okay, other than that the game I spoke of was "Phantom of Inferno," which has the name Reiji Azuma in it. As I'm sure you noticed, I broke it up giving mystery man the name Azuma, while giving Reiji to another student. 

Disclaimer: You can download a lot of things online but you can't download the actual Inuyasha, which is why I don't have or own him.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 28: Myth or Reality?  


Inuyasha and Kagome took their seats in the classroom. They were sitting in the middle row near the window. They talked a little before the bell rang and the teacher walked into the room. "Okay everyone please calm down and be quiet," Mr. Azuma instructed. Once everyone had settled down he spoke again. "Now as you heard me say in the auditorium, I just recently graduated from Tokyo University so I'm a little new to teaching. Also I don't know who any of you are so I'd like to go around the room and everyone introduce yourself and just give me a little background."

Slowly everyone introduced themselves to Mr. Azuma. When it came Kagome's turn, Inuyasha watched as he seemed to smile a bit more. "I'm Kagome Higurashi. I'm a senior. I live at the Sunset Shrine and I took this class because I really enjoy myths and legends," Kagome said. She slightly lied at the end. She did like myths but she had taken the class for an easy grade.

"So you live in a shrine," Azuma said. "I'm sure then that you've heard a lot of myths?"

Kagome seemed to give a small laugh. "Yes, my grandfather never stops talking about them." Introductions continued around the room. Inuyasha didn't like the guy but he still acted civil for Kagome's sake and introduced himself for the second time today. Luckily the teacher hadn't asked him about staying with Kagome or anything. 

Once all introductions were done, Mr. Azuma sat back on his desk while talking to his class. "Okay, seeing as how this is your first day back and my first day I don't think there's a big need for work." Everyone cheered at this. "I didn't say we were going to do nothing!" the teacher yelled over the noise. The class quickly sighed and quieted down. "Thank you. What I'm going to do is tell you one of the many myths I know. This one just happens to be my favorite. What's surprising about this legend is that all but 2 characters have names. The two that don't, happen to be the main characters. This is called the Legend of the Shikon Jewel."

Kagome visibly stiffened at this. "_There is no way he's going to tell what I think he is_," she thought.

Inuyasha who had been relaxing and almost ready to fall asleep was wide awake at this point. He sat up in his seat with his eyes trained on the teacher. 

"It started a long time ago with a miko named Midoriko. She was said to be one of the most powerful mikos ever to exist. She was able to purify demons and for that she was hated by demons. Finally many joined together and fought her. The battle was long but in the end neither won. In the end, Midoriko forced her soul out of herself and lock it along with the demon's in a small pink jewel that would become known as the Shikon no Tama. For a long time, nothing was known of the jewel until the 16th century when it was protected by another miko by the name of Kikyo."

Inuyasha slightly stiffened at this. "_If he mentions my name its going to cause problems_," Inuyasha thought. Since the beginning he had a bad feeling that the story was going to include him as well as everyone else in the group. He looked over to Kagome and saw her paying close attention as well.

"Many demons came for the Shikon Jewel because it was said to give the bearer whatever they desired. The miko killed all demons that came after it but eventually a hanyou came for the jewel. Rather than kill him, she would merely stop him from getting it. After a while they became friends. Some people even say that they were in love with each other."

"_She's was just a really good friend_," Inuyasha thought. "_I know now what true love is and there is only one woman I've ever loved_." Inuyasha looked to Kagome as he finished his thoughts. Kagome was looking at him a little pain, probably from hearing what Mr. Azuma said. 

As Kagome looked at the warm embracing look in Inuyasha eyes all the doubt she had before was gone. "_I can't believe I doubted him just because the teacher mentioned Kikyo_," Kagome thought as she returned Inuyasha's look with a loving one of her own.

"Kagome! Inuyasha!" the teacher yelled to them. They quickly turned to look at the teacher. "You're supposed to be paying attention to me, not each other." Kagome and Inuyasha looked down at the ground as they blushed. Some of their other classmates laughed at the couple being caught. "Now back to my story. The hanyou stayed pinned to the tree for 50 years until a mysterious girl appeared. The boy awoke when she called out for help while being chased by a demon. Before the girl could release him, the demon attacked her and tore her side. From her side, the Shikon no Tama emerged. The girl soon found herself held against the tree with the boy. She chose to release the boy."

The class listened to Mr. Azuma continue to tell the story. Even though he mentioned Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Rin, Sesshomaru, and Naraku, he never once mentioned Kagome or Inuyasha. He didn't give an exact account of things that occurred and often skipped things but the main story was still there. Kagome was surprised at how much her teacher remembered. He must have really liked the story if he remembered it so well.

As the class period winded to a close so did the story as well. "The friends fought hard in their final battle. Each willing to give their lives to stop the evil that had plagued them for so long," Mr. Azuma said as he noticed the time. He only had a small time left so he would have to sum up the final battle quickly. "The allies fought Kanna first and were able to defeat her. Next they took on Kagura and during that fight were led to Naraku. During the fight with Naraku Kagura escaped. The final battle carried on for a long while and became a one-on-one fight between Naraku and the boy, hanyou to hanyou. The deciding factor in the fight became the boy's heart and the heart of all those around him. He used his sword one last time combining not only all of his strength but the strength of those around him. The final blow tore Naraku in pieces that he would never again be able to harm a living person again. With the final battle also came the final piece of the Shikon Jewel. The mysterious miko was able to put the jewel back together again. It took them a couple of years to do it but it had gotten done." With that the bell rang for the end of the class. Everyone in the class had been paying close attention to the story. They quickly made their way to get up. "One more quick thing!" Azuma called out. "For myths and legends you have to keep an open mind. To test that I want you to think about what wish could have been made on the Shikon Jewel. It was the hanyou that made the wish so I want you to brainstorm and try to think up what he would have wished for. Okay now have a nice day."

With that everyone piled out of the room. By lucky chance Kagome and Inuyasha were the last ones to leave the room. "I'm sorry if I bored you with the story," Mr. Azuma apologized to Kagome and Inuyasha.

"I wasn't bored at all. I enjoyed the story," Kagome told him. "I don't know why you would think I was bored with the story."

"Well I figured you knew the story well enough already," Mr. Azuma said.

Kagome and Inuyasha started to get worried. "_Oh no, he knows the truth doesn't he?_" Kagome thought to herself. "_Now we're in trouble_."

Azuma could see the dilemma on the face and spoke up. "Well you living at the shrine that you do," he told them. "The tree that is within you shrine is said to be the same one that the hanyou was pinned to. I didn't bring it up in class because I didn't want to put you on the spot. You did know about the tree, didn't you?"

"Yes," Kagome said with a bit of relief. "It's just that my grandfather continually talks about ancient myths and such so I stopped paying attention to him long ago. You told the story rather well."

"Thank you very much," he replied. "Now you better get going or you're going to be late for your next class." He watched as they walked away. "_That was great. It was fun seeing you squirm like that. You still don't realize a thing._" Azuma laughed to himself. "_Well just have to see how much you squirm tomorrow_." With that Tai Azuma walked back into his room and relaxed at his desk. He didn't care about any other classes he had that day. All he cared about was after school and tomorrow with Inuyasha and Kagome.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well this guy is becoming more and more fun to write as I go along. You're probably not going to be surprise but its once again 3 AM for me. Damn why do I do this to myself? Well anyway I gave everyone my plans at the top of the story. I don't know what else to really say. So now for referrals:

  
**_So Far Gone_** by Choco-penguin storyid=1404779

AMV: **Emotion **www ?v=777 This is a video using Lifehouse's 'Hanging by a Moment' to the anime Vandread. Vandread is my favorite anime so I just had to refer.

  
Well I think that about it for now so join me next time for:

**Chapter 29: How Much Does He Really Know?**


	30. Chapter 29 How Much Does He Really Know

Well hello again. I'm sorry about making everyone wait so long for this update. I know it took an extra 2 days. I kind of got swamped with 2 Math classes, Physics, and Electrical Engineer class. Not to mention I missed the Physics quiz, did bad on the Math test, and same way on the Calc 3 quiz. All in all its been a fun weekend. I did take some time off to watch the Super Bowl (even though I don't care for sports that much). Its kind of fun when your cheering for New England, while everyone else in my family/home is cheering for North Carolina. As I've said before my Bday is coming up (this Sunday) and I do plan on updating on that day for sure. Just to announce it. :) So I guarantee there will be an update that day. Hopefully if things goes as planned there will be 2 more updates before then.

**_hikariko_** - Do you mean that you can get bloodshot eyes from smoking? That I know as for your eyes actually turning red, I don't see how that can happen.

**_inuyasha and sara_** - Congrats your my 700th reviewer. Thank you for calling me the Wisest Man on Earth. As for the college stuff with the angles before, that's basic geometry I learned in 10th grade so it isn't college level stuff.

**_Nikoru-the-silent-assassin_** - Thank you for reading all 29 chapters. I know what you mean when you said about the short chapters with no description or plot line. I've run into many stories like that and I must say that if it wasn't my own story, I might have passed it up as well. 

**_meylin_** - you mentioned that the same person that wrote Across Time wrote "Time for a change." I think we're talking about different authors. I've seen many stories with the title Across Time.

**_Inudragon21_** - I don't think Azuma is Kagura in disguise. That in my mind is just getting a little weird. Having a woman disguise as a man. I know there are stories that are based on this and I'm not dissing them. I'm just saying that it won't happen in this story.

**_Ryguy5387_** - The suspense is the best part. I do love toying with people a bit. It's just fun to see if anyone will guess who the guy really is. One word hint: Misdirection.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_ - **I've had bronchitis before and I know how bad it sucks. It sucks worse when you have asthma as well. As for Azuma, you'll have to wait and see like everyone else.

**_mokusei_** - you say my story is corny? If you could be a little more specific, I might be able to see what I can do about it. Thank you.

**_xo-Kagome-ox_** - you can't kill Tai, he's an important part to the story. You'll see soon enough.

  
Well I really only have a few more things to say before we start. First off I've decided to do another song chapter. This one though will be to appease all those people who wanted the song in the background. I'm pretty sure I know what song I'm going to use but it might change. That chapter though is about 5 chapters off. On the same note, that will be the chapter you will hate me for and be calling for my head. The chapter after it, Tai's true identity is revealed. If you want to know what I have planned be sure to check after the story for more info.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY okay? Now quick pestering. 

**A Wish From the Heart  
**

Chapter 29: How Much Does He Really Know?  


Inuyasha and Kagome walked out of the school courtyard. Kagome listened as Inuyasha grumbled about horrible school and horrible teachers. Kagome couldn't help though but ask an obvious question, "So what do you think of school, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha looked at her. She was smiling. How could she ask that she knew how he felt, but she was asking just to rub it in. "Most of it stinks," Inuyasha said. "About the only classes I like are Math, History, and PE. Physics is horrible. I can't stand all the theories and formulas. Japanese class is so boring cause their teaching me a language I already know. So what if I don't have exact grammar, who cares? As long as I get my point across I'm happy. As for English, that's even worse. Sure I know the knowledge that I got from you and Midoriko but its just another language I can get yelled at for not saying things correctly." 

"Well, it is said that English is the hardest language to learn," Kagome said.

"Well then they should just get rid of it," Inuyasha said. Then he spoke some English to her, "Cause I ain't gonna learn it."

Kagome was about to rebuke him out of habit but she realized that he was just showing his distaste for the language. "Now you know how I felt when I was always complaining. Now try learning all that while constantly missing days cause you're in a different era," Kagome told him. He just huffed in response. "And we haven't even gotten to the tests yet," Inuyasha just shivered at the word. "So what did you think of Myths and Legends. I found it funny that the exact legend he said was about us. No one had a clue."

"I don't trust that Azuma. He keeps on looking at me and you weird. Haven't you noticed it?" Inuyasha asked her.

"I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary," Kagome said. "Maybe he just likes you and me out of everyone else?" Kagome offered.

"If that's true, then I don't want his attention," Inuyasha said. "It just seems to me that he knows more than he is letting on. He knew all about of adventures a little too well if you ask me. Most legends lose details over time but he seems to tell it as if he has second hand if not first hand knowledge of it. He even knew that you were living at the same place we're I was once imprisoned. It just doesn't add up."

"Well I was surprised by that but as for having good knowledge. Do you know if he was a demon? I couldn't sense anything," Kagome said to him.

"He didn't seem to have a demon scent to him but he didn't exactly give off a human scent either," Inuyasha said. All the while they talked, they had continued walking home. When they got halfway through an alley, Inuyasha noticed about 7 people blocking their way. Without even turning around he could figure there were people blocking the other end. 

Kagome noticed the people in front of them as well. She turned around to try and go back the way they came. She gasped at what she saw. "There are 8 more people at this end." She whispered to Inuyasha.

"Are you Inuyasha?" One of the men asked.

"Why should I tell scum-sucking yakuza like you," Inuyasha told them. He had known full well who they were and he wasn't afraid. All there were, was 15 measly humans. Not even any youkai.

"I'll take that as a yes," the man replied. "Nothing personal, you just seemed to piss off the wrong people and now they want your head." As he said that, the men from both sides proceeded to make their way towards him. Some brought out knives, others had swords, while others used just their fists.

"Fine, nothing personal when I kick all your asses," Inuyasha said as he pushed Kagome up against the wall while he quickly took on the seven from the front end of the alley. They found themselves no match for Inuyasha's speed, and fighting ability. He would purposely put himself in front of one man. When that man went to strike Inuyasha, he quickly dodged it but a yakuza member who had been behind him ended up getting hit and badly injured. "Missed me," Inuyasha teased. He quickly disposed of the other members at then end. He then turned his attention to the other eight at the other end. They were advancing on Kagome. She was trying to escape them but all the stuff in the alley kept tripping her up. One was about to slash at her with a knife when a garbage can smashed into his head courtesy of Inuyasha. He quickly made his way to Kagome and helped her up. "Are you okay?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just scrapped my knee when I fell," she told him. 

"Fine, you go on ahead and get that taken care of. I'll take care of these losers," Inuyasha said. Before Kagome could respond the other yakuza charged at them. Inuyasha pushed her in the direction of the now clear exit to the alleyway while he faced the remaining gang members. Shortly after Kagome had exited the alley, Inuyasha had finished another seven of the yakuza. All that was left now was the man in charge that he had spoken to before.

"You are very well skilled, demon," the man said.

"I know I'm good," Inuyasha bragged, "but I'm a hanyou not a demon."

"So you are but either way I have my orders and you have to die," with that the man quickly pulled a gun out and shot at Inuyasha. Inuyasha responded quickly though and the bullet only managed to graze his shoulder. A few more shots were fired but none came close to hitting him. When Inuyasha finally saw an opening he rushed the man and ripped the gun out of the man's hand almost ripping the man's arm off as well. Inuyasha bent the gun in his hand. He then proceeded to beat the man senseless.

After a while, Inuyasha stopped the beating. The man was barely conscious and would pass out soon enough. "Tell me do you youkai in your ranks?" Inuyasha asked.

"Yes, many and they will defeat you," the man said.

"I highly doubt that. They better come after me soon. I'm getting a little tired of you lousy humans," Inuyasha said. With that Inuyasha threw one last punch. It knocked the man back a good five to ten feet and also unconscious. Inuyasha looked around and made sure there were 15 people on the ground. That meant he took care of everyone. When he got to the exit of the alley he felt two arms wrap around him.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried against his crest.

"Didn't I tell you to run home?" he asked her.

"Yeah but when I heard the gunshots, I got scared so I hid and waited to make sure you got out okay." She looked over him and saw the scrap on his shoulder. "You're hurt. We have to get that taken care of."

"I'll be fine. Your knees are worst then mine. Now lets go home already," Inuyasha said as they both left together.

Right across from the alley on the other side of the street Tai Azuma watched them from a rooftop. "Well it looks like you handle yourself well against 15 humans. Next time we'll see how you do against actual demons. That will be a more interesting fight," he said to himself. He then proceeded to walk away from the couple in the opposite direction.

*****

Inuyasha slowly sat down in his seat. Once again he found himself in Tai Azuma's classroom. He wished he could have changed his schedule and get a different class but both the school and Kagome were against him. Kagome told him he was just being paranoid. So he forced himself to go to class. He carefully watched the teacher at the front of the room. Inuyasha didn't think he'd ever trust the man. He seemed to have an ulterior motive and Inuyasha wanted to know what it was. Inuyasha was stirred from his thoughts as the teacher called order to the class.

"Okay, yesterday I told everyone of the legend of the Shikon Jewel," Azuma said. "As I quickly mentioned at the end, at the end of the battle the mysterious miko put together the final pieces of the Shikon Jewel. Shortly after the hanyou demanded the jewel and made a wish on it. I asked you to think about what the wish could have been. If any of you are able to get it, there are a few bonus points." Tai then called on some of the students.

"Did he wish to be a full fledged demon?" asked one of the boys.

"Nope, if you remember the hanyou seemed to lose any rational thinking when he succumbs to his demon blood. It's the same as going temporarily insane now and the boy knew this. So there would be no way he would still want that. Next?"

"Maybe he wished to become human?" a girl asked.

"Sorry. If you remember he always felt that he was weak when he was human. Even if this was a story where he and the miko would live happily ever after, he had made a lot of enemies. As a human he wouldn't be able to protect the girl so he definitely wouldn't want to become human for the rest of his life. Anyone else?"

The class continued to guess at solutions but Mr. Azuma continued to shoot them all down – every one with good explanations as to why their idea was flawed. Kagome had opted to stay silent since she had first hand knowledge. It was like cheating to her. "I was hoping one of you might actually get it right. So far no, is there anyone else who might want to try and guess?" Tai asked as he looked around the room.

"He wished all the people they cared about could return to life," Inuyasha called out from his laid back position in his chair. Many of his classmates turned to look at him. Other than introducing himself yesterday, Inuyasha hadn't spoken a word in the class. They were surprised to hear him give an explanation.

"Yeah, right," Reiji called out. "That's the stupidest idea I've heard." Some of Reiji's friend join in laughing at Inuyasha.

"Whether it is the stupidest or by your reaction the funniest idea you've heard, he's right," Azuma said. Reiji and all his friends quickly stopped laughing while everyone else seemed to wow at the wish. "Yes, the hanyou wished that whoever the people in his group cared for would be restored to life. All of their parents returned and surprisingly enough Sango's entire village had also been brought back as well. I would say it was a very good wish."

"So did the hanyou and the miko live happily ever after?" a girl asked.

"Actually that is never known," Azuma said surprising everyone. "You see not to long after making the wish, the hanyou and the miko disappeared. It is said that the hanyou went with the miko to her mysterious world and they were never spoken of again. That is the end of the legend."

"_I have to admit, most of the story is correct_," Kagome thought to herself. Some of the classmates groaned that the wonderful love story was over. Before they could complain and wanted to hear more the bell rang. "_I didn't realize it but we wasted all that time on taking guesses at the wish._" Kagome quickly got up and started to walk out not realizing that she was leaving Inuyasha behind.

Not surprising at all, Inuyasha took his good old time getting out of his comfy position in his chair. By the time he was finally walking out he was the only one left besides the teacher, who seemed to be packing up as well. "Good job on the wish, Inuyasha," Azuma told him.

"It was nothing," Inuyasha said. He didn't really want to just tell the teacher the truth so he didn't say much.

"Though I'm not sure if I can give you the extra credit."

"What?! Why not?" Inuyasha almost yelled.

"You have an unfair advantage against all the other students in the class," Tai said.

"Kagome's grandfather may tell a lot about the legend but I never pay attention to the guy and I don't remember him mentioning what the wish was. I just made a lucky guess," Inuyasha defended himself as he stood in the middle of the room.

The teacher made his way to the door. "I'm not talking about hearing it from the grandfather," Tai Azuma said. "It's one thing to hear about the legend like myself but it's another thing entirely to live it." 

Inuyasha was shocked at his words. "_Did he know the truth? How much did he know?_"

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to go to. You better hurry before you're late for you next class." Tai walked out of the room and into the hall. Inuyasha quickly made his way around the desks and got to the door. When he opened it though, the teacher was no where in sight. He was lost amongst all the students. Inuyasha now more than ever didn't trust the teacher. He definitely knew more than he was letting on. He would have to keep an eye on him a little more.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well as you can see, Tai Azuma really knows more than he should. Really makes you wonder doesn't it. Next chapter we see what happens when IY's spell wears off for a second time. Then some fluff. Followed by more fighting, IY's human night, and then the evil chapter. Then the big secret revealed chapter. After that there's about 3-5 more chapters remaining. So all in all at time point I estimate 11 more chapters. I hope you enjoy each and every one. Now for referrals:

  
_**From Friendship to Love **_by _Inuyasha's Princess17 _storyid=1473309 This story is great. I could have and would have referred this sooner but the author was one final chapter away from the end so I decided to wait until then. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

AMV: **_Army of Darkness_** www animemusicvideos org /members/members_videoinfo.php?v=6151 Another parody ad but one of the funniest I've seen. It combines many anime. Mostly Fushigi Yuugi. No IY sorry.

Well that's about it, join me next time for:

**Chapter 30: Flaring Tempers**


	31. Chapter 30 Flaring Tempers

Once again I find myself apologizing for putting this chapter out late once again. School is still being a major pain in my ass. I had to write an EE (Electrical Engineering) lab report the other day and none of my calculations were working out. I tried writing this last night but only got so far before I hit a small writer's block. Luckily I overcame it today and have finished the chapter. Now I'd like to make one statement before I go any further. This is a statement, not a promise. I still plan to update on Feb. 8th, since it's my birthday. If things are going well for me, I'll update with 2 chapters but no guarantees.

**_Inuyasha and Sara_** - You don't have to worry about me playing Silent Hill 3 at night cause I don't play it at all. I never did like horror type games, I'm more of an RPG person.

**_Drumwar_** - Your mention of Tai is in a special note right before the story. As for your other cracks, I know its not only my birthday but I doubt you are hours older than me. I was born 24 minutes after midnight so ha. AND QUIT CALL ME SPIDER BOY, its Spider.

**_Fukashi Oni_** - I took no offense what so ever to your commenting on my grammar. I just laughed at it, that's all. Don't feel.

**_Lady Suhada_** - I'm glad that you joined just because of me. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

**_Silent Dark_** - Don't feel bad that I didn't respond as to your guess of who Tai is. I'm just not saying anything yet. It makes your savor the surprise. You have 5 more chapters til you find out.

**_Ryguy5387_** - Misdirection is everything it means. If you've seen the movie Swordfish, you'll have a better understanding. As for a sequel, I'll talk about that at the end of the chapter, if I remember to.

**IMPORTANT TAI AZUMA INFO** - Okay so far just about everyone has made a guess as to who Tai Azuma really is. I've had guess of Sesshomaru, Naraku, Naraku's reincarnation, Kagura, and even descendant of Miroku and Sango. I'm not trying to be mean by not answering anyone's guesses. I just want to keep up the suspense. I will say this. There is one person out there that knows the whole truth about Tai Azuma. That person is Drumwar. He only knows though because he's my best friend in real life and he's finally reading the story. If he opens his big mouth, he'll be in a lot of trouble. Also as for Tai's red eyes, when I say that I'm talking about the Iris (the colored part of the eye). I'm not talking about his entire eyes being red. That would be just too weird. 5 chapter's left until his full identity is revealed but you will find new stuff out in every chapter, except the next one, about him. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I only own Tai Azuma, no one else, not even Inuyasha. 

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 30: Flaring Tempers

Inuyasha took his time walking home from school. He was alone because Kagome wasn't feeling well this morning so she took the day off. Inuyasha found it harder than usual to get through the day without her. He totally hated some of his teachers. At the top of the list was Mr. Azuma. It had been over 2 weeks since Azuma had mentioned to Inuyasha that he knew of Inuyasha's secret. He had confronted the teacher about it the next day but he just denied it and acted like he had said nothing. This just caused Inuyasha to hate him even more, if that was possible. Tai didn't seem to try anything more suspicious since then but Inuyasha made sure to keep his eyes open.

As Inuyasha was walking he noticed that he was being followed. "_These yakuza guys don't give up, do they_?" Inuyasha thought. They hadn't attacked for a while and Inuyasha was just starting to worry that they were giving up. If they gave up then, he wouldn't have anymore fun in the future. In the future he couldn't really let loose his frustrations like he did in the feudal era. Even if there were no demons to fight he could still plow through a few trees. Now with all the buildings he wasn't able to do that. Inuyasha finally cut through an alley. Once he had gotten halfway he stopped to face his pursuers. "You guys just don't know when to quit, do you?" 

"Oh don't worry. After today we'll quit," one of seven said, "cause you'll be dead."

"Yeah, yeah, big words. At least you'll be more fun then that last batch," Inuyasha said referring to the 15 men from before. "At least I hope 7 demons can put up better fight than 15 humans."

A few of the men were surprised that Inuyasha had noticed. "I see we should not take you lightly. You are a riddle. You have seem to appear out of no where. No one seems to know anything about you. Care to tell us who you exactly are?" the demon said trying to goad Inuyasha into giving out information. If they knew more about him they could fight him better.

"You expect me to help you?" Inuyasha asked with a bit of a laugh. "You'll have to do a bit of searching cause I'm not giving you any answers." With that Inuyasha quickly began the fight by charging at them. With the element of surprise, he quickly cut the demon that had been talking to him in two. The others scattered and tried to surround Inuyasha. Two demons quickly charged him but Inuyasha just jumped out of the way clawing one of them in the stomach. The demon wasn't finished yet but he was badly wounded. Inuyasha was about to go back and finish him off when 3 more charged at him. Inuyasha could practically tell that they were all weaker demons and posed no threat but he wished he had Tetsusaiga. The battle would have been over a lot quicker, not to mention Inuyasha had to get his hands dirty. Last thing he wanted to do was go home and explain to Kagome's mom why he has blood on his clothes.

Inuyasha dodged one of the 3 but the second demon hit Inuyasha in the back and then the third smashed into Inuyasha sending him into the alley wall. The three seemed to be pleased with themselves until they heard a voice. "If that's the best you can do, you can leave now and I won't kill you," Inuyasha said as he pulled himself out of his crater in the wall with a smirk on his face. They seemed stunned that he wasn't even hurt by their attack. He used this to his advantage as he quickly cut through the demon that sent him into the wall. He didn't stop as he took out the one that he injured before. "Three down and only four to go," Inuyasha said evilly.

3 of them seemed enraged at his cocky attitude and charged at him. Their only problem was that they charged recklessly and Inuyasha quickly dispatched them. Inuyasha then rose to look at the last remaining demon. He hadn't gotten involved in the fight yet. Inuyasha took a sniff of the air to see what he was up against. He then realized that this demon wasn't going to be as easy as the others. This was a water and thunder demon. It seemed that the old ways of each demon only mating with its kind had faded into the background in the present day. Inuyasha played it cool though, "Are you ready to get your hands dirty or are you just going to stand there all day?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well since I was told to kill you I guess I will have to do some work," the demon said, "but who said I'd have to use my hands." Inuyasha didn't waste time and jumped at the demon. The yakuza only raised his hand at Inuyasha as some water shot up from the ground and threw Inuyasha in the opposite direction. "I can control water that is around me. There are plenty of underground water pipes in this city which make for a handy weapon."

"Whatever," Inuyasha said as he charged once again. The demon sent water at Inuyasha put he just plowed through it no matter how much came at him. The demon smiled knowing that Inuyasha had played right into his trap. He raised his other hand and a surge of electricity flowed out and at Inuyasha.

Inuyasha was preoccupied with the water coming at him to notice the electricity. When he got hit it sent him flying back into a near by garbage container. "_Damn this guy is harder than I thought._" Inuyasha thought as he looked at the garbage around him. "_Good thing I end up by the garbage container rather than in it_." Something then caught Inuyasha's eye. Even with his back turned he could tell that his opponent was close.

"I must say I'm rather disappointed. I was expecting much more from you," the demon said. "Well no matter, you going to die. I'd dowse you with more water but I'd rather have you smelling like the garbage you are, besides you're still wet enough for my electricity to kill you." With that the demon raised his hand and shot more electricity at Inuyasha. At the last second, Inuyasha turned around with the remains of a shredded tire in his hands. He used it as a shield. Acting quickly he jumped at the youkai and wrapped the tire around his body capturing the arms. Inuyasha then proceeded to slam the demon into the alley wall. Then with a quick twist of the head, the demon ended up like his other comrades. 

Inuyasha groaned and looked around. No more demons. Good Inuyasha wanted to go and relax. That electric shock had taken a bit more out of him than he would ever admit. He made his way out of the alley and towards the Sunset Shrine.

Once again Inuyasha had failed to notice the one spectator that had seen fight. "_You seem to be a little out of practice, Inuyasha_." Azuma thought as he watched Inuyasha walk away. "_Next time your opponents will be a harder. What will you do then? The day will come when your strength will fail and you will fall. What will you do when that day comes? That is the day I look forward to._" With that Tai headed off.

*****

Inuyasha wasn't sure how much more he could take. The school just seemed to be against him today. Azuma kept calling on him and Inuyasha had been watching Azuma to closely to pay attention to the actual lesson. Then he got back a recent test in English. He failed it. He now knew why Kagome hated them so much. The day just kept getting worse. Inuyasha had just left the cafeteria before lunch had ended. He had been happy to hear that the café was going to be serving ramen today for lunch. Unfortunately his English teacher had held him after class to yell at him for the bad test grade. When he finally got to the cafeteria, they were out of ramen. Inuyasha tried to eat some of the other food they were offering but he as he ate it he could smell the ramen around him. It was driving him crazy that everyone else had some but he had none. He finally just stormed out of there. The day was getting worse as it went on. As he walked through the hall he passed out one of Kagome's friends. He couldn't remember his name, Hobo, Homo, it didn't matter. Inuyasha finally got to his locker. He violently shoved his books in and then took out the ones he need for the next class. Oh, how he wished this day was over. Just as he shut his locker he remember Kagome should be at lunch as well. Maybe he could convince her to share some of her ramen. With that he set off back to the cafeteria. 

*****

Kagome had seen Inuyasha storm out of the room. She knew his day wasn't going well but she wasn't sure what had him made this time. It could be that there was no ramen left. It always was a popular food item when they had it and it usually sold out quickly. Kagome was afraid of what would happen if Inuyasha didn't calm down so not even a minute after he left, Kagome followed. Not long after leaving the cafeteria she met up with Hojo. Kagome groaned to herself.

"Hello Kagome," Hojo greeted her with his usual smile. "How is your day so far?"

"Good," Kagome replied. "_I know this guy is going to ask me out. Is he just too stupid to take a hint_?" Kagome thought. She had never actually come out and told Hojo that she was with Inuyasha because she feared he'd be deeply hurt by it. Hojo had asked her out many times within the month of school and luckily for Kagome she was able to keep Inuyasha from meeting up with Hojo. Someone might think that she was cheating on Inuyasha going behind his back and meeting with Hojo but she did it more for Hojo's own safety because she knew Inuyasha might try to harm Hojo.

"I was wondering if you wanted to catch a movie this weekend, Kagome?" Hojo asked her.

Before Kagome could answer, someone else gave an answer for her, "No she doesn't." Kagome turned to see Inuyasha walking down the hall towards them. "Kagome's with me so you can buzz off."

"Who are you might I ask?" Hojo asked politely.

"I'm Inuyasha, Kagome's boyfriend," he told the boy. Kagome could hear the possessiveness in his voice.

Hojo looked to Kagome. "Is this true, Kagome?" he asked.

"Yes, it is," Kagome said a little sad that he had found out like this. "I didn't tell you before cause I didn't want to hurt your feelings. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Kagome," Hojo said his voice not changing from his merry tone. "I don't mind. You didn't tell me so as to protect me so I don't mind. As long as you are happy." With that Hojo walked away.

When he was out of sight, Kagome turned to Inuyasha, "That was awfully rude of you!"

"Well sorry, that guy should leave you the hell alone. Besides from what I could tell you've been meeting with him before," Inuyasha said with a bit of anger.

"It's not like I'm cheating. He's asked me out a few times and I've tried to subtlety tell him I was taken but he just didn't take the hints," Kagome said. "I didn't want to hurt his feelings but it seems like you did a good job of that."

"Who cares about his feelings, besides he didn't seem to broken up just a little while ago," Inuyasha told her.

"He's probably just hiding his feelings. He's probably really broken up right now." With that Kagome stormed off back towards the café so she could finish her food and get to her next class.

"_Now me and Kagome were fighting_," Inuyasha thought. "_I'd ask how this day could get any worse but I'd just be jinxing myself_." Inuyasha had no idea that he already had just by thinking it.

*****

Inuyasha slowly walked out of math class. He'd been held after yet again but this time it wasn't all bad. The teacher had wanted him to tutor another kid in class. This would just mean more work. Inuyasha just told the teacher he'd have to think about it since he had a lot of work from other classes. As Inuyasha stepped out of the classroom, Inuyasha knew something was wrong. When he looked over and saw Kagome pinned up against a locker by Reiji, he almost lost it.

"Come on, you know you'd rather go out with me rather than that stupid Inuyasha kid," Reiji told Kagome. 

"Get away from me," Kagome said trying to push him off but it wasn't doing any good. She wished someone was around to help her but this end of the building was only used for certain classes and everyone seemed to have headed to their next class by now. Kagome was well aware of what was going on. Reiji was mad at Inuyasha. Because of Reiji's constant trying to make fun of Inuyasha in class, his girlfriend had broken up with him saying he was immature and childish. Now Reiji was coming after Kagome for revenge against Inuyasha.

"You say that but you want me near you, am I right?" Reiji stated more than asked. He then shocked Kagome by what he did next. He slowly leaned in to kiss her. She didn't want to have to kiss this guy. 

Kagome closed her eyes so she wouldn't have to face watching this horrible scene. Just before his lips touched hers, she felt a rush of air. As she felt that, she felt Reiji's weigh on her disappear and felt herself being pushed. When Kagome opened her eyes she saw Reiji lying on the floor five feet away, and Inuyasha pushing her a little more behind him so as to protect her. "You son of bitch. How dare you try to force yourself on Kagome!" Inuyasha yelled at him.

The boy made his way to his feet and was about to yell something back to him but stopped in shock and horror. He could see two small ears on the top of Inuyasha's head. "You…Your n…not human," Reiji said.

Inuyasha realized that he had allowed his anger to get the best of him but at this point he didn't care. He just wanted to kill Reiji. "So what? What are you going to do about it?" Inuyasha said.

"I'm going to tell everyone," Reiji said getting back a bit of confidence. "You'll get kicked out of school. I always knew you were different with your weird silver hair and gold eyes…." Reiji fell to the floor as the final words escaped his mouth.

Kagome and Inuyasha looked in shock at the site before them. Reiji had fallen to the ground after being knocked unconscious and standing behind him was none of the than Tai Azuma. Inuyasha growled at seeing the man. "What do you want?"

"You have to learn to keep your temper under control, Inuyasha. Otherwise more will find out about your little secret," Azuma said.

"You knew about Inuyasha," Kagome said. Inuyasha had never told her about what the teacher had said to him a few weeks ago. "How?"

"I have my ways," Tai said.

"Well it doesn't hurt when you're not human to begin with," Inuyasha said.

"Do you know what he is?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah, he's a demon," Inuyasha said. "You did a pretty good job of hiding your scent before. Why let it slip now?"

"There is a time for everything Inuyasha. You will learn that soon enough," Azuma responded. He then leaned over Reiji's fallen body. Tai raised his index finger. They watched as the nail seemed to grow longer and also glowed a little. They then watched as Tai shoved it into the base of Reiji's neck.

"What are you doing?" Kagome all but screamed at the teacher.

Tai removed his claw like nail and it then shrunk back to normal. "Just a small technique I know. It disrupts the brain's signals to the body and causes a small overload to the brain. If I hold it on long enough he'd die – just a small jab like that cause's short term memory loss. In other words, he won't remember see Inuyasha as a hanyou." Tai then turned to Inuyasha with a smirk on his face. "We don't want anyone to learn you little secret now do we?" Inuyasha was about to press for more information but the late bell for class rang. "You'd better be heading off to class, your late." With that Tai picked up Reiji and carried him off. "I've got to get this sick boy to the nurse's office." Inuyasha just growled as Azuma walked off. This day just had to get worse, didn't it?

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Okay, I hope you guys like that new info. I tossed Hojo in there so I could finally get him out of the way. I really don't like him that much but I couldn't seem him totally provoking Inuyasha enough so that's why Reiji was tossed into the story. Just to piss IY off enough for the spell to wear off. Now two things to talk about. First off, I don't totally like the next chapter. Not because its fluffy but because I feel like I'm selling out a bit. I'm going to be mentioning an actual movie and I just feel weird about it. Either way I'm going to write it. Secondly a few people have mentioned me writing a sequel. I'm not sure at this point. I may do one, its possible. I always welcome helping ideas so if you have ideas for a sequel let me know. I'm going to work on the one I have in mind. Now for referrals:

**_Before I Die_** by _Goijh_ storyid=1557758

AMV: **The Pain of Ryoko's Heart** by Eric Jones of Fly High Studios www toonamiarsenal com /download/fan.php This is a great emotional video. I definitely recommend it. I was going to tell you that it isn't on the web anymore cause its creator shut down its site but luckily another place is hosting it. I got off my lazy ass and did a simple search to find it. Definitely worth the download.

  
Well that's about it. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 31: A Heart Filled Evening and a Movie**


	32. Chapter 31 Heart Filled Evening and a Mo

TODAY'S MY BIRTHDAY. YAY!! And even if ff.net says I updated this story on the 7th, its actually being updated on the 8th, which is my birthday. Also a happy birthday has to go out to my best friend, Drumwar, who shares the same B-day as me. Anyway, I know just what I want for my Birthday. LOTS OF REVIEWS. You'd make me so happy. I know I only updated with one chapter but I'm doing my best. The next chapter will be out soon enough.

**_xo-Kagome-ox_** - No there's a different reason you can't kill Tai Azuma. You'll see soon enough. 

**_Tsukinoko1_** - Thank you so much for the summary. 

**_Ks-Starshine_** - the yakuza is the Japanese equivalent of the mafia.

  
**Inuyasha 3rd Movie Summary (**courtesty of Tsukinoko1)- Inuyasha's father died the night he was born. Inuyasha's mother was a noblelady and still living at home so even though not much is mentioned about their relationship we must assume that they were meeting in secret. The human warrior who was in love with her killed her to "protect" her because she was "obviously being controlled by the demon". Inuyasha's father showed up very last second and brought her back to life with Tenseiga, named his baby and that was about the end of him. The source of Sesshoumaru's resentment seems to be that their father went to go die protecting Izayoi and Inuyasha (he was already injured from Ryukossei and it was pretty clear he wouldn't be surviving another fight) when Sesshoumaru wanted to challenge him for his, uh, throne? Lands, whatever. His father advised him that he needed something to protect before he could rule. At the end of the movie Inuyasha finally gets to see his father's face as his spirit comes to talk to the two brothers. Sesshoumaru still denies that "this Sesshoumaru has anything to protect" but he envisions Rin and Jaken anyway... The movie involves MASSIVE fighting and destruction, a third sword of Inuyasha's father (oh, gotta love the scene where Toutousai delivered Tenseiga to Sesshoumaru by leaving it stuck to a tree with a sign that said "For Sesshoumaru (heart)".) And while there was no kissing in this movie, I wouldn't particularly call it a break. One, (in my opinion) major bit of info is that Inuyasha's rosary is broken partway through, but Rin collects the beads and gives them back to Kagome, so at the end of the movie she tells Inuyasha to close his eyes because she's going to "give him something good" and sticks the rosary back over his head. *heheheh* It definitely seemed longer than the first two movies. Cool ending song, Four Seasons by Amuro Namie. 

There is a little bit of OOC on IY's character but please put up with it for the sake of the story and fluff. Thanks.

Disclaimer: I asked for IY or Sango *gets hit on the head with a mysterious boomerang* for my birthday but I got neither so I still can't say I own IY.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 31: A Heart Filled Evening and a Movie  


"Well now I think you have a good idea of the different types of myths and legends," Azuma addressed the class. "You be surprised what items that are around today can be tied into a myth or legend. Many antiques that you might see could be of the same type used in a legend. So for tomorrow I want you to bring in something of yours that you might think could be part of a myth. If you don't have anything or the item you have is worth a lot don't worry. You don't have to bring it. I just want to show you how much can attached to a legend. That's all for today." In the final minute of the class the students talked amongst themselves.

"So are you going to bring anything in Kagome," Eri asked her.

"Yeah, you have to have some pretty cool stuff," Yuka said.

"I might. I'll have to look and see. I don't want to bring in anything dangerous," Kagome said.

"What could be dangerous about a bunch of old antiques," Eri said. Neither friend knew how dangerous some of the items at the shrine were. The Noh mask was proof of that. Shortly after the bell rang and the students departed from the classroom.

*****

Inuyasha and Kagome walked out of school in a good mood. Well as good of a mood as you could get out of Inuyasha. "Can you believe that assignment we have for that horrible English class?"

"Oh come on Inuyasha, it isn't that bad. All we have to do is pick out a movie in English, watch it and write a report on it," Kagome said. "Since Midoriko's gift, you know how to speak English just fine, you just don't like the teacher."

"Damn right," Inuyasha said. "It's not that I hate having to watch a movie. I like that part. I just don't like having to write a report on it. It sucks when your teacher hates you. No matter how good I write the report he'll pick out every little detail to yell at me for."

Kagome just laughed at him. "Now you know why I was never happy about school." Kagome then decided to change the topic. "So did you like the rest of the day?" Kagome asked trying to make conversation.

"Otherwise it was fine," Inuyasha replied. "At least I got some ramen today, unlike last week."

"Yeah we know what happens when you don't get your ramen," Kagome said remembering his outburst last week.

Inuyasha remembered it but didn't like the memory. "So what movie are we going to watch?"

"I have an idea," Kagome said.

*****

Later on that night Kagome and Inuyasha found themselves on the couch in front of the television ready to watch the movie Kagome had picked out. The rest of Kagome's family were headed out the door. "You should come with us, Kagome. Your mother says the restaurant we're going to is really nice," Mr. Higurashi said.

Before Kagome could say anything her mother spoke up. "Let her go, dear. She and Inuyasha have a school project to work on and it will give them some time alone," Kagome's mother said and whispered the last part and with that they were out the door. Kagome and Inuyasha were alone.

"So what is this movie called?" Inuyasha asked Kagome as he laid himself out on the couch.

"How many times to I have to tell you Inuyasha. It's called **Field of Dreams**," Kagome told the absentminded hanyou. After placing the DVD in the player and starting it, she pushed Inuyasha back into the couch cushions and laid in front of him.

He was about to yell at Kagome for blocking his view but Inuyasha realized that he liked Kagome snuggled up against him He put his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. Kagome didn't complain either. She liked being this close to him. Together they watched the movie. Half way through the movie Kagome had to explain to Inuyasha the playing catch with a baseball between father and son was an American tradition. Kagome was deeply enjoying the movie. It was a heart warming film. She had never seen it before but her friends had suggested it which is why she decided to watch it for school. When the ending finally came, Kagome had cried a little. Seeing the guy actually getting a chance to play catch with his father once again touched her heart. She then remembered Inuyasha was with her and how he felt about her crying so she turned her head to look at Inuyasha. She was surprised as she could see a small tear even coming out of his eye. He was actually touched by the movie as well. **[AN: I know Inuyasha was a little OOC with that but I had to put that in there. As one person said about the movie on 'I Love the 80s: Strikes Back.' You'd have to have ice running through your veins not to have cried even a little at the end of that movie. And since Inuyasha isn't Sesshomaru, he had to cry just a little. lol.]**

"That was a good movie was it?" Kagome asked Inuyasha as she laid on her back looking at Inuyasha to the left of her.

"It was okay," Inuyasha said trying not to show his soft side.

"I know you like it," Kagome said. She then thought for a bit, "I find it ironic that the movie is somewhat similar to what happened to us."

Inuyasha was surprised by this. "How is building a baseball field similar to shard hunting?"

"Your thinking too literal, Inuyasha," Kagome told him. "Don't you realize, in the beginning Ray Kinsella was compelled by that voice to build a baseball field. We were compelled to find all the shards of the Shikon Jewel."

"I still don't get it," Inuyasha said.

"Then let me finish. In the end, Ray got another chance to spend time with his father. So did you, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and myself," Kagome said. "He didn't start out building the field just to bring his father back, and neither did we put together a jewel to bring back our family but in the end it did. This movie is all about getting a second chance at something, just like we have been presented with."

"Okay, I think I understand now," Inuyasha said as he stared at Kagome.

"And its all thanks to you," Kagome said giving him a quick chaste kiss. When she pulled her head back from the kiss she looked at Inuyasha and could see the love for her in his eyes. Inuyasha wasted no time at all in kissing her back but not with a quick kiss. Instead with a long passionate kiss.

Inuyasha took a quick breath. "I love you, so much." Inuyasha watched as tears came to Kagome's eyes. "Kagome, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, it's just that all this time we've been here in my time we haven't had much time for us. Not to mention, I only heard you tell me that once almost a month ago. I was almost worried that you didn't mean it. It's good to hear it again," Kagome told him honestly.

"I will always love you. If I don't say it, it's always in my actions because I'd do anything for you," Inuyasha told her truthfully. Kagome didn't respond but instead leaned in and continued their kissing session from before. 

Halfway through their make-out session, they hear the front door open. They both instantly realized it was Kagome's family returning home. In their hurry to separate from each, they both fell off couch and onto the floor with Kagome landing on top of Inuyasha, straddling him. Kagome's mother walked into the room seeing the two of them. "Hello Kagome, Inuyasha. I see you're having fun. We're going to go to bed so you two behave and be careful," Mrs. Higurashi said as she walked out of the room shooing Souta up to bed and then taking her husband with her before he could see Kagome and Inuyasha.

Inuyasha and Kagome just stayed in the same place for a while in total confusion. They couldn't believe her mother hadn't yelled at them or anything. Inuyasha was the first to speak, "Your mother is weird."

"Yeah," Kagome said barely responding.

While Kagome was still spacing out, Inuyasha was becoming very aware of his position. "Ahh, Kagome could you move please?"

Kagome looked down and took in her position. She blushed in embarrassment as she got off of him. "Well I guess we should be getting to bed," she said.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said as they both got up and made their way to bed.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well as I said, no second chapter yet. Sorry if I let you down. I hope you like the chapter I wrote. It's only going to get better as we go on. Now for referral:

**_To Be With You Tomorrow_** by _Tessenchan storyid=1333268_

Special Referral: **Swat Kats the Movie **by _Lord Tristan Wolfhawk_aka _Drumwar_ storyid=1288107 He's my best friend and its his Bday too so the least I could do was to refer his story. This doesn't have any IY tie-in though. Its based solely on Swat Kats.

AMV: **Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz **put to Feuer Frei by Rammstein www15 brinkster com /greenjinjo/amv2.html Very nice vid.

  
Well its 2:30 AM so join me next time for:

**Chapter 32: Friend or Foe?** - What does Azuma have up his sleeve?


	33. Chapter 32 Friend or Foe?

Well just to let everyone know. I'm putting off revealing Tai's identity by one more chapter cause I'm putting in a Sango and Miroku chapter next. I wrote down a small outline of the chapters left and though I don't have it in front of me. I believe there is about 12 chapters left including the epilogue. This story just keeps getting longer doesn't it?

**EVERYONE** - okay as of now I can truly say that I have been flamed. Before it wasn't bad being called a jackass cause that was a big misunderstanding. This one though is an all out flame. Here is a copy:

_this fanfiction is the wort story i have ever read if ti were to have a smell it would smell like butt crack butter this chapter was way to short you should take this story and shove it up youre anus this is a disgrace to inuyasha fan fics you need to do more research on inuyasha fat head -_INUFAN123

Now some of you might be getting really mad at this as you would expect me to but I didn't. Instead I just laughed at it. This flame was so horribly written and the person's so full of shit that I just laugh at the thing. The spelling mistakes and everything running together a just one big sentence is so bad. The fact of calling me a 'fat head' at the end is like a 2nd graders insult. So with that and the grammar taken into account I'd have to say that a little kid is writing this. I don't care either way. My pride has not even felt this blow. Now if someone was to flame me and be specific and everything then I might take offense but not here. I do have one final comment to INUFAN123 - Next time you try and make an ass out of someone with a review, make sure you don't end up looking like an ass yourself.

**_Tsukinoko1_** - I really thank you for all your reviews they have been very helpful. To answers everything, I made Kag and IY walk through an alley because I didn't want them fighting in the street. I don't know Japan very well. I happen to live in the state of Pennsylvania in the US. That's why I'm not so familiar with Japanese schools or the time the sunsets. For me depending on the time of the year it can set anywhere from about 4:30-9 PM. Dinner/Supper for me is the later meal of the day which for me is about 5pm. That scene was suppose to take place at approximately 7pm if you assume the sun sets the same way in Japan but I now know it doesn't. As for Kagome's school, I'm not good with Japanese school either so I used my high school experience as a base (I really apologize for not looking into this but I was in a bit of a rush and decided to just go with what I know). To me, I've had Kindergarten to 8th grade as Grade School. 9th-12 as high school (otherwise known as Freshman, Sophomore, Junior and Senior years), then college. I still don't totally understand how exactly Japanese schools work other than they go about all year around and have class on Saturday.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Good to have you back. I hope you enjoyed catching up. I also hope you enjoyed your trip.

**_DarkInuyasha_** - I take it your not one for fluff and you really like fighting? I have to include the fluff for more fun not to mention there are fluff addicts reading and I have to appease them too. This chapter has action. The next has fluff and action.

**_Animeblonde10_** - for number of chapters see the first note at the beginning of this chapter.

**_ giggles19701_** - I don't know if Inuyasha's gonna ask Kagome about being his mate. I don't know how I'm going to approach that yet, or if I will at all. Who knows that could mean yet another chapter.

**_Hot Otaku_** - You say you're confused about who Azuma is. So is everyone else. Just a little mystery for now. As for Sess, we'll have to see.

**_ MitsukiKikistar_** - Thanks for reading all 32 chapters to catch up. As for IY: 2nd movie, yes I have it and have seen it. My friend was kind enough to use his DVD burner to burn it to DVD. :)

**_Minako-Chan4_** - Also thanks for reading 32 chapters at once. Must have taken a while. At this point I don't think Kag and IY will go back to visit their friends. There will come a time when they head back but that's for a different reason and it won't be for long. As for Sango and Miroku, they're in the next chapter.

**Thanks to all who wished me a happy Birthday** - what was bad was that my own younger brother forgot my birthday. My parents waited until the next day to get me a cake and he thought it was my Bday then because of the cake. Also the cake was an Ice Cream cake and the bottom flavor melted ruining the cake a bit but it was okay for me cause the bottom flavor was chocolate, which is my favorite and made is really easy to get at. lol.

Disclaimer: Not even Rumiko Takahashi would give me IY for my Bday so still no luck at getting him.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 32: Friend or Foe?  


Kagome looked at Inuyasha as they got ready for school. "What are you doing with that?" she asked as she noticed Inuyasha holding Tetsusaiga.

"Well Azuma said to bring something that could be tied to a legend, didn't he?" Inuyasha said with a smirk. He wanted to see how the teacher would react when he brought the sword into class.

"Whatever," Kagome said. Her grandfather had given her some old relic and Kagome checked with Inuyasha to make sure it wasn't dangerous. "Let's go or we're going to be late." With that Inuyasha and Kagome rushed out the door headed for school.

Kagome and Inuyasha made it to school on time but were almost late for homeroom because one of the teachers saw Inuyasha walking in carrying a sword. "Hold it right there!" the teacher yelled as he came towards Inuyasha. When the teacher got there he took a hold of the middle of the sheath of the sword while Inuyasha still firmly held the hilt. "You're not allowed to bring any deadly weapons in school. Are you crazy? You're looking at serious punishment, young man," the man continued to speak for five minutes while Inuyasha seemed to look like he was paying attention but he couldn't care less. Inuyasha just heard the final sentence in the man's speech. "So why did you bring this with you to school?"

"It's an ancient sword that I thought I'd bring in for Mr. Azuma's class. He told us to bring in an antique if we had one," Inuyasha said though he hated calling his sword an antique.

"I don't care. A sword is still a deadly weapon so I'll have to confiscate it," the man said as he pulled on it but was only able to unsheathe the sword. As the teacher looked at the sword he had to keep from laughing. The sword looked horrible. When he finally regained his composure he talked again, "I guess I was wrong. That's no deadly weapon. A plastic letter opener is worse than that. You can go now." He handed the sheath back to Inuyasha as Inuyasha walked past him. The teacher couldn't help but make one more small joke, "Be sure not to let anyone touch it, the sword might break."

Inuyasha controlled his anger but let a low growl escape his throat as he walked into school. Kagome tried to hold in a laugh but a small noise escaped her and caught Inuyasha's attention. "Don't you start," Inuyasha warned her.

"Well I did find his comment funny. You have to remember when you first found the sword," Kagome told him. "You didn't think it could cut wet paper."

"Yeah, I remember," Inuyasha said. "Let's just get to class."

*****

It wasn't long before Kagome and Inuyasha found themselves in Tai Azuma's class. Only about half the class had brought in an object. As he went around the room, Azuma was able to make some small connection to a myth or legend for each object. Some were really simple like the item came from the same time period or maybe even looked similar to those spoke of in myths. When it was Inuyasha's turned, he just smiled at the teacher.

"So what did you bring, Inuyasha?" Azuma asked.

"I brought this," Inuyasha said as he held up Tetsusaiga still sheathed. "It's a pretty old sword."

"Yes, I can tell. From its tattered condition, I'd say it's at least a few centuries old and some of the craftsmanship seems to agree. I'd have to say I'm surprised it's still in that good of condition. Where did you happen to get it?"

"It was given to me by my father. Would you like to look at it?" Inuyasha offered it for Tai to hold.

Kagome was shocked at this. Inuyasha would usually never hand his sword over to anyone. She looked at the hanyou that she thought was going crazy. She could see him with a bit of a evil smirk on his face and that's when it dawned on Kagome. "_Mr. Azuma is a demon so he wouldn't be able to hold Tetsusaiga. I can't believe Inuyasha is attempting this in the middle of school_," Kagome thought to herself.

"No that's okay Inuyasha," Azuma said. "Would you please show the sword to the rest of the class?" Azuma said indicating the actual sword and not just the sheath.

Inuyasha withdrew the sword from the sheath as everyone looked at the beaten up old sword with surprise. One person called out, "I think it looks better in the sheath." A few more people made comments about how it looked.

"Don't judge it just as it is," Azuma said. "Remember it has probably seen countless battles. Just because it looked crappy now doesn't mean it isn't a good sword. It's the same thing in myths, people underestimate certain items because they don't look the best and ones they pass over turn out to be the most powerful of all. You have to realize the hidden potential of objects. Look beyond the glossy or disheveled appearance and see the items for what they truly are," Just then the bell rang. "Well good job today. Thank you to those who brought in something. I'll see you all tomorrow."

*****

Inuyasha and Kagome exited the school together like usual and also like usual Inuyasha was complaining about how horrible it was. Kagome wasn't paying much attention to him and that's why she almost got separated from Inuyasha. She noticed that he continued walking where they usually turned. She quickly caught up to him to talk to him. "Where are you going, Inuyasha? We were supposed to turn back there," Kagome said as she continued walking with him.

"You should really listen to someone when they talk to you. You'd have known that I said I didn't want to go straight home," Inuyasha said.

"Well are you going to tell me where you are going?" Kagome asked but he didn't respond. Kagome just followed along not liking it but trusting him all the same. In just a little bit Kagome realized that Inuyasha had led them to a large park within the city. "This is a nice park," Kagome said. "I used to come here as a kid a lot."

"I wanted to come here because I missed being around all the trees," Inuyasha told her truthfully.

"You could go back to the Feudal era for a bit," Kagome said noticing that no one other than Inuyasha was around to hear her.

"I'd like to but with all the school work we have I don't think I'd be able to get away for long. Not to mention I don't want to leave you or your family unprotected," Inuyasha said.

"Thank you, Inuyasha, for everything," Kagome said giving him a hug. She was really happy that he would rather spend time worrying and protecting her then in his own world where he's truly at home."

"Isn't this a touching scene," someone called out. Inuyasha and Kagome turned around to see someone coming close to them. They could tell from the evil smirk on his face that he was with the yakuza. "I hated to break up your little love scene but don't worry about it too much I'll just be breaking up both of you in just a little bit," the demon said as he cracked his knuckles. Not long after about 6 more demons showed up surrounding Inuyasha and Kagome.

"You guys tired this before," Inuyasha told them. "I took on 7 of you before and they were easily defeated."

"Well when you send weak people to do a job, you're not always going to get good results," another demon said.

Inuyasha set down his backpack and looked at Kagome. "You stay here. This could get a little messy," with that Inuyasha took off towards one of the demons.

"_You are always so impatient, Inuyasha,_" Tai thought as he watched the fight from a tree branch near the fight. "_You are up against much tougher demons this time Inuyasha. You won't be able to defeat them as easy as you did that last set_."

Even if Inuyasha knew that he didn't care, he continued to charge at them and attack but with no luck. They could easily evade him. He was also paying the price for it. While one would evade him another would hit him from behind or from the side. If not for the shirt, you would be able to see a few bruises on Inuyasha's back. His face and arms were cut from behind forced into trees or the ground. If Inuyasha had stopped to think about it, getting hit into the ground wasn't too bad. He was used to tasting dirt thanks to Kagome. It was the blows that the demons made either to get him there or while he was there that was taking the toll on him. At one point, he got slammed hard into a tree and then fall to the ground.

"INUYASHA!!" Kagome yelled as she watched Inuyasha get beaten. She wasn't sure how much she could take. She wanted so bad to run out to him but she knew she'd just be getting in his way if she did and he would yell at her for it.

Inuyasha slowly picked himself up off the ground. "Don't worry about me, Kagome. I'd worry more about what's around you. That's more important," Inuyasha said to her.

Kagome looked around herself but there was no yakuza near her. The only thing that was near her was Inuyasha's backpack. "_He couldn't be talking about that could he_?" Kagome thought and decided to look in the backpack. What she saw there made her want to hit herself. There tightly stuff in the bag was Tetsusaiga. How could she have forgotten about it? It would greatly help Inuyasha. She tore it out of the bag as quickly as possible. "Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled and he looked towards her. As soon as his head turned she threw the sword to him.

Inuyasha smirked as the sword landed in his hands. Thankfully Kagome had understood what he had said before. "Well I'd say its about time to end this fight," Inuyasha said as he drew the sword from the sheath. He didn't let it transform right away though.

"You think you can defeat us with that crappy sword. I'd get a worse paper cut than what that could do to me," a demon said. "Attack!" he yelled as him and three others jumped at Inuyasha simultaneously.

"_Fools, they have just sealed their fates_," Tai thought as he watched the fight. "_I'm actually surprised that Inuyasha showed the intelligence to lure them off-guard by not showing the swords true form right off_."

At the last second, the Tetsusaiga transformed and Inuyasha swung the swords easily taking out the four around him. He quickly dispatched another who was too in shock to defend. The other two were trying to get away. Luckily for Inuyasha they were sticking side by side. He quickly caught up to them and took both out in one swing. Unfortunately they two were going around a tree at the time so that came tumbling down as well. As luck seemed to have it, it was the very same tree that Tai Azuma had been standing it. He failed to respond quickly enough and he went down with the tree as well.

Inuyasha didn't notice at first and sheathed the sword. Kagome came running up to him with his backpack in hand. She was about to congratulate him when they both heard a voice. "You have to be more careful when you swing that sword of yours," Tai said as he picked himself out of the tree. "I could have gotten hurt."

This guy was just getting Inuyasha even angrier. "I don't think that would have been a bad thing," Inuyasha said. "Now you want to explain why you're here? And make it quick or you'll end up like the others."

"I was merely watching you fight," Tai said. "I've seen quite a bit of your fights so far. To think you let yourself get caught off guard and thrown into a wall by low level demons." Tai said referring to Inuyasha's previous encounter.

"So you're with the yakuza," Inuyasha said. "I should kill you now." Inuyasha slowly reached for his sword.

"You know I thought you showed intelligence when you didn't have Tetsusaiga transform right away but I now see I was overestimating you," Tai said.

"WHAT!" Inuyasha said as he withdrew Tetsusaiga and put it close to Tai.

"Do you think it's just a matter of coincidence that you get a replacement teacher, fresh out of college, when yakuza starts attacking you? That this teacher happens to be a demon who knows just about everything about you?"

"That just makes me not trust you even more," Inuyasha spat back.

"Yes but ask yourself this, is it just coincidence that you bring Tetsusaiga to school the very day that it will be needed for a fight after school?" Tai asked. Inuyasha didn't have an answer to that.

"So what? Are you telling us to trust you all of a sudden?" Kagome asked in Inuyasha's place. "We don't know anything about you."

"And you won't," Tai said back. "It is not my place to tell you to trust me or not to. That is your decision to make. I can not make it for you but remember this: a time will come when that decision will be of utmost importance. Your very lives depend on it. Now I must go."

Inuyasha still didn't trust this guy. And the way he said the last part didn't sit well with Inuyasha. "You're not going anywhere just yet. I'm not done with you." Inuyasha said.

"Really?" Tai asked. Suddenly winds all around started to pick up. It was getting back near Inuyasha and Kagome. Inuyasha turned towards Kagome covering his eyes and shielding hurt from the blowing dirt and anything else that the wind picked up. Not long after the wind died down and Inuyasha looked around but Tai Azuma was no where to be found.

After a bit of silence, Kagome and Inuyasha made their way home. "So what do you think, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked him.

"I still don't trust him. He knows too much about us but won't reveal a thing about himself," Inuyasha said. "The way he said our lives depends on our decision didn't sound right coming from him. From what I can tell he seems to be a powerful demon."

"I don't totally trust him either," Kagome said. "I don't know whether it's good that he's a strong demon or not. It all comes down to if he's a friend or foe?"

"No way a friend," Inuyasha said. "He's either an ally or foe, no way a friend!"

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well there you go. 5 more pages. If you don't realize this, this story all together w/o author notes and such is 107 pages long. Well I'm gonna wrap this up cause its almost 5 AM. Quick refferalls:

  
**_Dead Famous_** by _RoseFire1_ storyid=1548586 very good story. Has over 5000 reviews. Why not read and make it more? lol

No AMV referral just an anime referral check out Full Metal Alchemist. Good anime

  
Well I hope you enjoyed this. See you next time for:

**Chapter 33: An Adventure for Two** - This is a Sango/Miroku chapter.


	34. Chapter 33 An Adventure for Two

Well everyone I know you're probably mad because this chapter took a bit longer. I'm sorry about that but I got a little rushed with college. Yesterday I had an EE test, an Econ quiz, and some hard Calc 3 homework. I spent my weekend on this. Today I have a CSE test and a skiing test (this shouldn't be too hard). On Wednesday I have an take home EE problem from the test due, some very hard homework from another Math class, as well as Physics (lab writes to do and homework, both killer). So as you can see the world is against me right now. I'm also trying to fit in playing FFXI for some fun. Hey I need to relax too. I've even fallen behind on reading fanfics as well. 

Well I must say we had our favorite reviewer once again. INUFAN 123 made another great flame review. I'm still just laughing at them, though your spelling did improve. Congrats. So for everyone to see here the review:

_ listen bitch you need to stop putting dead famous fas 5,0 reviews because you dont have that may i didnt read this story from my ass but you probaly wrote this story from yours i think this is one of the most poorly written fan fics i have ever read and believe me i know about inuyasha lame you could even ask the fanfic writer noki-san who wanted to flame you about the 10 minute frencher but didnt want to hurt youre feelings and what kind of lame-ass name is the spider anyways i have given many pleasant reviews but i guess youre name will never fall under that list you dumbass_.

Okay here's my response. I don't know what you mean by fas 5,0 reviews but I know I'm not going to get 5K reviews. If I was I'd be going crazy. Rosefire is an excellent author that deserves all of them. I'm a new writer to IY fanfics, so I didn't expect many reviews for this story. I'm surprised by how many I got. If you can pull either a story or a review out your ass, then please go see a doctor, something is definitely wrong with you. About Noki-san, I address that later to her but even if your telling the truth that she didn't like the kiss then just fine. I know their are parts that some people might not like, hell there are some parts I look back and don't like, but if they like the story as a whole then I have accomplished my goal. As for my Pen-name, it would have been just **Spider** but that was used already. I got the name from when I was a fan of Spiderman comic books. It used to be spiderfan but over time I shortened it. I like it just that way it is now. You say you've given pleasant reviews, mind giving me the title of the story so I can check it out? And if what Noki-san is saying is true, are any of these pleasant reviews to an Inu/Kag story? Feel free to continue flaming me. I'm getting good laughs and it increases my review count as well. :)

**_ DarkInuyasha_** - I write both fluff and action/adventure so as to reach a wider audience and in my mind it makes for a better story. There might be people out there that only like fluff and no fighting. So I ask you to please bear with me as I continue the story. I also know I'm not descriptive enough for the fights but that's cause I have a hard time going into detail about that. I had originally only planned 3 fights: IY/Naraku, IY/Inutaisho, and IY/ All Yakuza. I later decided to throw in more fluff and mystery which gave way to more fights.

**_Inuyasha and Sara_** - Thanks and I hope you enjoyed the Valentines day dance. I think your grammar is just fine probably better than mine.

**_Sleepwalking Chicken & HAP_** - Don't worry about not reviewing for the last few chappies. I get like that too every now and then. Happy Belated B-day to you too. I just wanna say one more thing and this will also be in a review to you when I get around to it: Awesome story with Frogotten Snow. I liked the ending and the little poem/song and the end was great. I really hope to see an epilogue. IY and Kag deserve it, not to mention I want to know what happened to Naraku, you have to have him suffering. 

**_GranolaBar_** - I'm glad you liked it. I get like that too. Read or like right now writing til all hours of the night not caring about sleep (its almost 4AM). As for you saying you could never come up with something like this. I think you could. Hell I'm surprised I came up with something this long. I believe that this was one of my one-in-a-lifetime stories. Hopefully I can get really good ideas with some others.

**_Tsukinoko1_** - Thanks for the info on Japanese schools. That's surprising about designated walking routes to school. But as for IY cutting through a alleyway, do you really think he'd be a stickler for the rules? lol. I do have one important question to ask: What sort of festivals are held during the fall in Japan (around late September, or October and held in a park). This is important to the next chapter because I just realized that what I was going to use is more a spring festival so my logic is screwed up. So if you know anything it would really help.

**_Noki-san009_** - You don't have to worry about Inufan. I seriously do laugh at the flames so I don't mind them at all. I can't wait to see what I get for this chapter. I'm glad you like my story. As for yours, as I said with school I haven't had much free time but I will look into it. I have read the summary so I do plan on checking out the story. As a final note its good to know that I even have the friend of the flamer on my side. lol. That's so much fun to say out loud. :)

**_Sango14120_** - I could have done Titantic but Field of Dreams came to me first and I liked to comparison. So also in response to your question, Field of Dreams was a real movie. It was just on TBS the other day. Its a good movie with Kevin Costner, Ray Liotta, and James Earl Jones (Luke, I am your father. sorry couldn't resist). Its definitely worth watching. Let me know what you think of it if you get a chance to watch it.

**_NR_** - I'd have to look back but I think Inuyasha tried his Ultimate attack against Naraku but it didn't work (according to my story not anime). Also the attack IY used was one I made up not just the Windscar/Kaze no Kizu.

**_Darkmoon1_** - I hope you were able to read the entire chapter. I also can't wait to read you next chapter either. :)

Disclaimer: I may be sleep deprived but I still know I don't own IY, okay?

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 33: An Adventure for Two

Sango's father happily looked out over the village. A little over a month ago, it was in ruins. Now it was back to its former glory if not better. Word was getting around that the Youkai Exterminators were back in business and they were slowly getting more people looking for help. As luck would have it, a person was entering the gates to the city at that moment. Sango's father retreated back into his home where he knew the person would be coming to. 

A few minutes later the messenger was showing into his house. "Welcome to our village," Sango's father welcomed the man. "Please make yourself comfortable."

"There is no need," the person said. "I'm just here to deliver a message and then I must be on my way."

"Who is this message from?"

"It is from Lord Kuranosuke Takeda," the messenger said.

"Ah yes, I remember Lord Takeda. We were called to dispatch a demon once before for him. It was a bear youkai," Sango's father said. "And as I recall from hearing my daughter speak, the demon's spirit came back to destroy your castle some more, am I correct?"

"Yes, you are correct, sir, and we are grateful for your help," the man said. "It seems that the bear youkai had a brother who has come destroying out castle. He has told us that he seeks his brother's killers. Our Lord, in good conscious, could not send this demon to your village so he has asked me to come here to seek your help."

"Wait here a second," Sango's father said as he stepped outside and yelled to another one of the exterminators. "Go fetch Sango and Miroku, right away."

A few minutes later, Sango, Miroku, and Midoriko entered the house. "You called for us, father?" Sango asked noticing the visitor.

"You do remember Lord Takeda, don't you?" he asked her. 

Sango remembered him very well. It was the same person that last time she was there, he had proposed to him. She noticed the messenger there. "_I hope he isn't here to ask me to marry that guy_," Sango thought. She quickly erased the thoughts from her head and answered her father, "Yes I remember him," she said with a fake smile.

"Well it seems that he is having trouble from another demon," he told her. "It is the brother of the demon you two have slain. He is attacking the castle out of revenge and seeks his brother's killers. I want you two to go and take care of him. The brother wasn't very hard so I doubt that this one will be very tough either."

"I would like to decline to go, sir," Miroku said.

Sango and her father were shocked to hear this. "Might I inquire as to why? Your holy powers might be of need in this fight?" the father asked as both he and Sango awaited his reply.

"It is a personal matter," Miroku said. "I would request that Miss Midoriko be sent with Sango if holy powers are needed." Part of Miroku could believe what he was saying. "_You're getting a chance to be alone with Sango, why are you turning it down_?" Miroku thought as he fought with himself. Then he began his weirder but as he thought of it as rational thinking. "_If she goes, there is a chance the Lord might propose again to her. If it does happen I do not want to be there. She would need to think clearly and me being there would only interfere with her judgment._"

Sango's father wasn't sure what he was going to do but luckily for him the solution spoke up. "I would love to help Sango," Midoriko said, "but I have another job I have to leave for shortly."

"I didn't know," Miroku said. "But if you had a job wouldn't you leave as soon as possible?"

"This demon is a demon that only strikes once a month, on the new moon to be exact. Since that time is still a little bit away, I decided to stay here to help protect the village until a few days before the new moon. If I were to go on this journey I would not be able to return in time."

"What if I were to go in your place?" Miroku asked still trying to find a way out of it.

"I do not think you would be able to handle this demon. It is very tricky and I have dealt with this kind before. It would be best if I would go" Midoriko said shooting down Miroku's hopes.

"Well then it's settled. I hate to force you to do this Miroku, but I would feel much better if I knew you were there to help Sango if she would need the help," Sango's father said.

Miroku knew he was defeated but part of him was happy with his defeat. "I will go," Miroku said bowing.

"Good, if there is nothing else I would like you to leave right away. We must take care of this matter quickly. The messenger will help you on your way," the father said pointing to the messenger. The three of them left right away headed to Lord Takeda's castle. Once they were gone Sango's father turned to Midoriko, "I never knew you had an upcoming job?"

"Neither did I," Midoriko said smiling at him. "Those two just need a little help on their way and I figured I might help out as I can."

"I was told you have a link with them. So you will know how they are doing?" he asked her.

"Yes, I will but it is not them that I worry for," Midoriko said as he looked at her confused. "Inuyasha and Kagome are going through a trying time at this moment. They are the ones I worry for the most."

"What has happened to them?" Sango's father asked getting a bit worried.

"They seem to have angered a large group consisting of many demons. The group, or yakuza as they call themselves, has tried to pick them off with only a few members but Inuyasha has defeated them. I worry for when all the yakuza attacks them full-force."

"That will be very bad. Is there anything we can do to help them?" he asked.

"It would be hard seeing as how they are in the future. Besides at this point they don't need our help, there is a demon from the future that is keeping an eye on them," Midoriko said.

"Who is he?"

"I am not perfectly sure but I have an idea. My only concern is whether he is on their side or not. It is too soon to tell. We will just have to wish them the best."

*****

In the future, Inuyasha and Kagome were just getting out of Inuyasha's most hated class, Ancient Myths and Legends. Kagome ran out of the class quickly so as to talk to a friend quickly before the next class. Inuyasha though took his time walking out. It surprised him that even Mr. Azuma had left class right at the end. "_Probably had a meeting_," Inuyasha thought as he passed the teacher's desk. As he walked by he noticed the Azuma's daily planner sitting open on top of the desk. "_Well if the guy left his planner open he's just letting everyone seeing it. I wonder if we have any pop quiz coming up?_" Inuyasha thought. He knew this might be considered cheating but he hated the teacher so to him it evened out. To Inuyasha's surprise there was only one entry into the book. It had an entry for next Saturday. It said '7pm, Tokyo Park – East.' Inuyasha wasn't sure what to make of this but was interrupted from thinking about it.

"Is there something you need?" Inuyasha turned around to see Mr. Azuma at the door. "I came back because I forgot something but I find you here almost late for you next class. Do you need something?"

"No, I was just day dreaming," Inuyasha said as he quickly rushed out of the room.

Tai walked over to his desk and looked to where Inuyasha had been staring. He noticed that Inuyasha had been looking at the planner. "This will make things more interesting," Tai said to no one in particular, "but I doubt you'll piece things together just yet. We'll have to wait until next Saturday to see." With that Tai grabbed a few items and walked back out to his meeting.

*****

When Sango and Miroku arrived at the castle they were greeted by the Lord himself. "Sango, it is good to see you again," the lord told her. "When I sent my messenger, I was expecting help but I didn't expect to be graced by your beauty once again."

Sango was flattered by his compliments but she only wished that it was Miroku that was saying it. Yeah, in the past Miroku had made the comments but she had taken him for just being his perverted self. She wished he would tell her something nice and mean it for a change. She had thought he cared for her when she agreed to come to the village but he hadn't made an more advances as of yet and then when he asked not to go on this mission with her, she really started to feel alone. "Thank you," Sango replied. "You had said that the demon was calling for his brother's killers so that is why Miroku and I are here."

"Yes, I remember both of you. How is your arm?" he asked Miroku.

"It has healed just fine, Lord Takeda," Miroku said politely.

"That is good to hear. Please come inside while we talk some more," Takeda said as he led them inside the castle. "So I see you are missing your other three companions. What has happened to them?"

"We finished the quest we were on and we all went our separate ways," Sango said.

"And what of you monk?" the lord asked. "I don't remember you being a demon slayer."

"I wasn't but I was asked to stay with the slayers so as to use my holy powers to help them in their battles," Miroku replied.

"Yes, that would be helpful," the lord agreed. "So Sango have you given any more thought to my offer?"

Sango was surprised at this. "You mean … your offer to marry you?" Sango stuttered.

"Yes my dear Sango. I have not given up yet," Lord Takeda told her.

Sango didn't know what to say. She didn't want to marry him but she didn't want to hurt his feelings either. She looked to Miroku for help but he was just staring at his tea which they had been served. "I don't think this is the time to discuss this," Sango replied. "We should worry more about the demon that is attacking your castle. Do you know when he will return?"

"Yes, he will return just like he always does. He comes every night demanding the killers. The first night he came he just asked for them but did no damage. Each night following he has done a little more damage," Takeda said. "Last night he destroy one of out storage huts which contains some food we store up for winter. Luckily we still have plenty to last us."

"Okay, tonight is the last night you will have to worry about this demon. We will defeat him tonight," Sango assured him. "Now if you don't mind I think it best if we prepare."

"I am confident that you will succeed. I will have one of my servants show you to your rooms," the lord said as he called a servant and instructed him accordingly. "Are you at all hungry?"

"No, I am fine," Sango said.

"I am good as well but thank you for the offer," Miroku said as he left following the servant.

*****

Later that evening Miroku came to see how Sango was doing. He found her polishing her boomerang, preparing for their job. Sango looked up to watch Miroku walk in the room. She really wanted to tell Miroku how she felt but she was afraid he didn't feel the same way and that she might scare him into leaving her village.

Miroku was feeling just about the same way. He not only feared being tossed out of the village if Sango didn't feel the same but also feared Lord Takeda since he also seemed to hold feelings for Sango. She had never actually turned down the lord's offer, which he thought the meant she was considering it. Rather than speak personally, he felt that he should just talk about their upcoming fight. "Getting ready for tonight?" he asked her as he watched her continue to polish the boomerang.

"Yes, what about you? Are you ready?" She asked him.

He nodded. "I have made sure the ends to my staff are as sharp as I could make them," he told her. Then he took a closer look at her face. "You look tired, Sango."

"I think the walk here took more out of me than I thought," Sango said. "But I will be fine until we finish our mission."

"Nonsense, you need to be well rested," Miroku told her. "We still have a few more hours until nightfall so you go ahead and get some rest. I will wake you when it is time."

Sango realized how tired she was and decided to take Miroku up on his offer. When Miroku noticed that she had agreed with his reasoning, he left the room so as to give her peace to sleep. It didn't take long for Sango to fall into a deep sleep. 

*****

Sango awoke in the middle of the night to the sounds of a large roar. She quickly realized that there was a battle going on outside and Miroku hadn't awoken her. Luckily she had fallen asleep in her exterminator outfit so she just picked up her boomerang and rushed outside. She rushed to the sounds of the battle to find Lord Takeda, some soldiers, and many servants watching that battle. When she reached the lord she asked him, "Why wasn't I awoken?"

"The monk said you were resting and not to disturb you, not even for the demon," he told her.

Sango was shocked. Miroku had lied to her in saying that he would wake her. He even made it that no one else would either. She was going to seriously yell at him after this fight. It was then that she looked to the battle. The demon had some wounds but not many. Miroku was losing the fight. He had claw marks on his chest and back. He looked to be losing quite a bit of blood. She watched as Miroku jumped at the huge bear demon only to be swatted away and into a wall by the bear's huge claw.

"No I will avenge my brother by killing you," the demon said as he swung his paw to finish Miroku off.

"_This demon thinks that I was his brother's killer and knows nothing of Sango. As long as she is safe, then I have no regrets_," Miroku thought as he awaited paw to finish him. He was too beat up to dodge it but the paw never hit. In fact he heard the bear roar in pain. Miroku looked up to see the arm of the bear fall to the ground disconnect from the rest of his body. He also noticed a familiar boomerang swing back towards the group of spectators. It was then that he saw Sango standing in front of them.

"You still have to go through me!" Sango yelled at the demon.

"Why have you interrupted this fight? It does not concern you," the demon said.

"I aided in your brother's death so it does concern me," Sango told him. The demon growled and rushed forward at her. She was a good distance away so she threw Hiraikotsu at him. The demon was able to move to dodge most of the blow. He only got hit in the side but continued towards Sango. She didn't move though. He swung his paw at her but once again it never hit. Hiraikotsu on its return path sliced right through the demon's neck, taking off the demon's head and finishing off the demon once and for all. Hopefully it didn't have any more relatives. After catching the boomerang she threw it to the ground and ran quickly over to Miroku. "Are you crazy? What were you thinking trying to take the demon on by yourself?" Sango asked frantically.

"I thought I could do it. I guess I didn't realize how much I relied on my wind tunnel before," Miroku said. Then he looked even more serious as he gazed right at her. "I tried to take him on by myself cause I didn't want anything to happen to you. He thought I was the only killer so even if I would have lost, he wouldn't have come after you. I didn't want you to get hurt. Neither does Lord Takeda, he wants you to marry him. He wouldn't want you to get injured."

"I don't care what he wants. I don't want to marry him," Sango said truthfully. She didn't notice the crowd around them but even if she had she didn't care at this point. "I was worried about you," Sango was almost crying as she told him. "I love you. I don't want to lose you."

Miroku was surprised at her outburst of feelings. He finally knew how she felt about him so he knew what he should do. "I love you too," he said as he looked directly in to her eyes. "Your not going to lose me. These wounds look worse then they are." Sango barely heard his words. The only thing she noticed was that he had loved her as well. She just grabbed him and pulled his chest against her face as she cried more tears but ones of joy instead. Miroku could feel his chest hurting from her strong hug. He held out as long as he could before the pain started to get to him. He didn't want to ask her to stop so he decided to do it his usual way.

Sango could feel a hand caress her bottom. She instantly stopped crying at this and loosened her hug. Surprisingly she didn't feel like hitting Miroku. Instead she just turned her face towards his, "You know I should hit you for that."

Miroku instantly stopped in shock that he wasn't actually getting hit for it. He came up with a response though, "Did you ever think it was my way of showing my affection for you."

"I always thought it was just you being a pervert," Sango said.

"Not always but sometimes it was a little bit of both," Miroku said with a smile. Sango returned the smile. Both of them felt greatly relieved now that they both knew how the other felt. It would make things between them much easier.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Okay so as of now the Sango/Miroku relationship is taken care of. Now all I have to do it take care of IY/Kag. But that is coming soon enough. I'm going to make this quick so no referrals today. Sorry. Just one quick question:

**Anyone here play FFXI?**- Let me know cause I play and I'd love to play along side anyone here.

Last thing before I close up for the night. To make up for this chapter taking so long and the possibility of the next one taking a bit, this chapter was longer but I'm also including the names to the next 3 chapters. This is because they are **really important.** So be sure to be here for:

**Chapter 34: Trust  
Chapter 35: Timing is Everything  
Chapter 36: Secrets Revealed**


	35. Chapter 34 Trust

Well everyone, sorry about the wait yet again. My brother, who is also in college but 2 years ahead of me, has been bugging me about coming out to see him and so finally this past weekend I did. This is how it is. I currently live at home because I go to a Penn State branch campus that is near to my home. My older brother though is out at the main campus in State College. This past weekend I went out to see him. If you want a quick laugh, you can laugh at my stupidity. I'm one of those people, even though I'm now 20, has to push buttons. So when I saw a button in my bro's apartment, which I actually thought was for the fan, I pressed it. Little did I realize that it was the button for the alarm. So the alarm went off and we couldn't shut it off either. To shut it off, you have to call up to the main office and have someone come down and shut it off, so it was going for about 10 minutes. Even if your in the apartment it is loud but if you're standing outside, you'd probably go deaf even quicker. I feel really bad about this, especially since there's a chance it could cost my brother over $100 (I'd reimburse him of course). At this point though I don't think I have to worry.

Also I tried writing this chapter on Sunday night but I had a hard time with the beginning of it so I didn't get it finished then. And so here I am at 3:30 AM Monday Night/Tuesday morning typing this. Like usual huh?

**_FukashiOni_** - yeah I couldn't remember Takeda's name either but I looked it up in the episode. As for my grammar/spelling mistakes, please don't point them out. I really don't care if I make a mistake, its not like I'm submitting this for an actual book. As for the numbers such as 2/two. I know. My English teacher always pointed this out but I figured it was easier on the reader's eyes to see the number.

**_Sleep walking Chicken & HAP_** - I think you misunderstood me, when I said FFXI I was referring to Final Fantasy 11, the MMORPG game.though FFX was pretty cool.

**_Inuyasha and Sara_** - I don't mind if you didn't like the last chapter. There's always some chapters people don't like but as long as you still like the story as a whole then I'm doing my job well. As for V-day, it was just another ordinary day, I don't have a gf or anything so nothing special.

**_FluffyPrincess_** - I haven't forgotten about the furball, Shippo. I don't like him in the series very much but don't worry he'll be back in the story. As for Kouga, read the note at the end of responses.

**_BlaiseWorth_** - Actually I hate to prove you wrong but I was right. This chapter and the next two are chapters 34, 35, 36 respectively. FF.net counts the prologue as Ch. 1, which it isn't. So that off sets it. You can see I've made changes to fix the confusion.

**_Tsukinoko1_** - Thanks for the info. In the end I just decided to make it an Autumn Festival.

**_DarkInuyasha_** - I wasn't sure about posting your response to INUFAN123 but I decided to anyway. So its next.

**_INUFAN123(_**this isn't my response but one written by DarkInuyasha to INUFAN123) - Listen You jackass if u think this story sucks then don't read it because for those of us who do we don't want some piece of shit like you dirtying a good story so don't read this I don't know just who the hell you think u are but I never want too see your f***in ass write another bad comment on this story again. So stay the hell away and never read this story again and I believe everyone one agrees stay away you fucking asshole and if you dirty another good story I will say alot meaner things than that.

**_Takerus Lost Angel _**- Well I think I did good on my skiing test. I'll know today, I hope. I hope you did good on your snowboarding. I remember you like Kouga so be sure to check the info at the end of the responses.

**_Amanda_** - I probably won't have a wedding scene at all. I may write some fluff but I'm not that good. I'm still wondering if I'm going to approach the whole mating issue or not.

Well everyone two quick notes, I'm sure you noticed that change in chapter titles according to ff.net. That is to help out with the confusion of chapter numbers. Secondly, if everyone remembers, I said before that Kouga wasn't going to make another appearance in this story. That was due to the fact that his lawyers claim he was scheduled for only so many appearances and I had used them up already. Well after constant fight with the damn lawyers, they gave in and said Kouga could make another appearance. It is not known yet how big of an appearance. He may be here for about 2 chapters but that is later. So all you Kouga fans can be happy.

Disclaimer: I'm so poor right now, I barely have money for food, how could I afford IY?

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 34: Trust

Inuyasha slowly made his way downstairs. It was Saturday and Kagome was sleeping in. Inuyasha had tried that but he found himself unable to, years of being up at the crack of dawn made it hard for him to break the habit. As he walked into the kitchen to get something to eat he was surprised to see Souta at the table. The kid was usually sleeping in on the weekends and usually trying to on school days as well. "What you doing up so early, kid?" Inuyasha asked.

"I guess you don't know. There's an autumn festival in the park this weekend," Souta told him. "Dad and mom are taking me today. I guess they decided to leave you and Kagome to go by yourselves."

"It sounds like fun," Inuyasha told him.

"Yeah it is. There are games, some small rides, and plenty of food."

"I get the picture," Inuyasha said. He knew if he let the kid, he would just continue going on and on. "_Later when Kagome gets up I'll ask her if she wants to go to this festival,_" he thought as he at the food he had gotten for himself. 

*****

"I'm bored," Kagome groaned. Her parents were gone who knows where. She was alone with Inuyasha which was nice but there was nothing to do. It was 4 in the afternoon, there was nothing on TV and they didn't have any good movies at home so she was going crazy. 

Inuyasha then walked into the house. He had just been outside sitting in the God Tree for a while. He had heard Kagome's complaining and remembered about the festival. "Hey Kagome, your brother told me that there is an Autumn Festival going on in the park today and I was wondering if you wanted to go," Inuyasha asked her. Even though they had admitted their feelings for one another he still felt nervous when asking her to do something with her.

"That's right. I forgot all about the festival. Of course we'll go," Kagome said as she got up off the couch. "I just have to get ready."

Inuyasha nodded and sat down for a while. He knew he was in for a bit of a wait so he sat down and watched TV. After Kagome finished getting a shower, she made Inuyasha get one. He quickly got one and got ready. It had taken almost an hour for the both of them to get ready. As there were leaving Inuyasha grabbed Tetsusaiga just in case but he couldn't help but feel that he had forgotten something.

"Inuyasha, lets go," Kagome yelled to him from outside.

"I'm coming," Inuyasha said as he closed the door and ran to catch up to her. He just brushed his feeling off as being a little paranoid.

*****

Inuyasha and Kagome enjoyed their time at the festival. They had run into Kagome's family while there but they continued on their own. It was near quarter to 7 when Inuyasha and Kagome decided to get on the Ferris Wheel. As it took them to the top, they admired the view that it gave them of the surrounding city especially as the sun was setting. "Its totally different when you take a look at it," Inuyasha said. Kagome looked at him a little confused so he continued, "think about all the times you rode on my back and saw the area around the village. To know how much its going to change in 500 years is just amazing."

"Are you mad that all the trees are gone?" Kagome asked him.

"A little but there are still many places outside of Tokyo here that still have forest," Inuyasha said. "What about you? Which do you like better?"

"Well I really like the area of the feudal era and the peacefulness, at least when we're not getting attacked," Kagome said with a small laugh. "I also do like the modern time because of my friends and of course all our modern day conveniences."

"Yeah you can't go without your shampoo," Inuyasha said as he still remembered her complaining about no shampoo when she first arrived in his time.

"So what era do you like more?" Kagome asked even though she slightly dreaded the question.

It just so happened that as Inuyasha gave his answer the Ferris Wheel came to a stop with Inuyasha and Kagome at the top. "When it comes down to material things, I like the feudal era for all the trees and the space to run. I like your time here, for all your modern stuff, such as ramen," Inuyasha said with a smile and Kagome gave a small laugh. "But my overall decision wasn't made based on those material things. Believe it or not my answer isn't a set one. It changes based on where you are." Inuyasha looked straight into her eyes, "The era doesn't matter to me, being with you does. I don't care where I am as long as I'm with you. I love you." With that he leaned forward and kissed Kagome. She was almost in tears at his words but she returned his kiss whole-heartedly. They finally broke apart when they felt the ride moving again to let more people off. When Kagome looked at Inuyasha again, she was shocked. Inuyasha had realized it as well. Now he remembered what he had forgotten. Tonight was the night of the new moon, and there with Kagome sat a human Inuyasha.

"Listen Inuyasha, just to be safe I think we should head home," Kagome said.

"I agree. Once we get off, we can head back," Inuyasha said.

Inuyasha and Kagome slowly made their way through park. Since the festival had been in the West end of the park, they had to make their way across the entire park. The park was rather big so by the time they reached the East part of the park, they could barely hear the sounds of the fair. As they walked through the trees hand in hand, they caught sight of two woman standing by a large tree ahead of them.

"Well well, don't you look mighty fine," one of the women said seductively while winking at Inuyasha.

"What do you say you leave the girl behind and come with us," the other said. "Well show you a good time."

Kagome glared at them while they flirted with him. "I'm sorry but he's with me and he isn't going with two bimbo's like you."

"Because he can have a much better time with us than some small twig girl like you," the first said. "I think its rude to call us bimbo's especially since neither of us are blond." It was true one was a brunette while the other had black hair.

"Not to mention we have a couple of other friends that he could have a fun time with as well," the black haired woman said.

"Well he's not going with either of you or your friends," Kagome all but shouted. Inuyasha just watched the scene unfold before him. He would have turned them down himself but he was having fun watching Kagome act possessive towards him.

"We didn't even bother to ask your name," the brunette said.

"I'm Kagome."

"Not you, him," the black haired girl said.

"He's Inuyasha and he's staying with me!" Kagome said before Inuyasha could open his mouth to respond.

"Why don't you let him choose for himself? He hasn't said a word yet," a third voice came from behind them. Inuyasha and Kagome turned around to see yet another woman and two men with her. "Come on, we're all gonna have some fun, you should leave her behind and come join us. What do you say?" she asked him.

Kagome was about to answer but Inuyasha stuck his hand out in front of her causing her to stop. "Kagome is right. I'm not going to go with you. Now if you will please excuse us we must be going." With that Inuyasha started walking away pulling Kagome with him.

"You looked better with silver hair anyway," the third woman said.

"You must have me mistaken," Inuyasha said as he continued walking.

"I don't think so, we only know one person with silver hair and that's a certain half-breed named Inuyasha," she replied. Inuyasha froze at this. If they knew he was a hanyou this could only mean one thing.

"You finally understand," one of the original two said. "We're going to have a fun time. I don't know about you though. We were actually being generous. You could have let the girl go and she would have been just fine but you had to do it the hard way.

"Seeing as how your hair has changed to black and I can't smell any demon blood, I'd say you are at the unfortunate time where you become human for a small time. One of us would be enough to kill you now," one of the men spoke up.

"This is going to be easier than we thought," the other guy said. As a reflex Inuyasha pulled Tetsusaiga from the sheath but it was only a dull blade. "Ha you're not going to be able to do a thing with that." Inuyasha realized his mistake and sheathed it. He wasn't sure how easily it could break in that form but he wasn't about to take that chance.

"_This isn't good_," Inuyasha thought. "_There are only five of them, that's less than before. They seemed to be a bit surprised that I'm human so that can only mean on thing. These guys are stronger demons that ones I've fought before otherwise there would be more of them. Great, I might have had a hard time as a hanyou, what the hell am I going to do as a weak human_."

While in his internal struggle, one of the women rushed up and grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into a tree behind him. Kagome hit the demon with her fists but she didn't even budge. Using her free arm she swatted Kagome knocking her about five feet away. Inuyasha growled and hit the demon with the sheath of Tetsusaiga. Her hold on Inuyasha's throat loosened slightly but not enough for Inuyasha to escape. "If you're going hit me with that I'll just have to take it off of you," she said as she reached for Tetsusaiga. She made the mistake though of grabbing it by the hilt and as soon as her hand was on it she felt pain shoot through her arm. It was enough for her to let go of Inuyasha's throat. She removed her hand from the sword's handle and held her hand with the other. She then glared at Inuyasha, "that was a big mistake." She quickly grabbed Inuyasha's throat again and slammed him into the tree again but this time much harder. "For that I'm going to kill you slowly but very painfully."

"I wouldn't advise that," another voice said. This one was closer to all them then expected. Tai Azuma jumped down from a tree next to the one that Inuyasha was being held against.

"Oh another hero, here to save the half-breed turned human," she said as she tried to swat Tai away as she had Kagome.

Tai though quickly intercepted the hand and held it. "Now I'm not one to strike a lady but for that rule to apply, the woman must act like a lady," Tai said as he swung his hand swatting her away instead except that she went flying for a good 40 feet before landing on the ground. Without her holding him, Inuyasha fell to the ground below him gasping for breath.

"Inuyasha, are you okay?" Kagome asked rushing up to him.

"I think I'll be okay," Inuyasha said. "My back hurts though."

"Well that's what you get. You have to be move careful when you turn human," Tai told him.

The demoness quickly got up. "Do you know who you're messing with?!" she yelled at Tai.

"Yeah, I know but I really don't care," Tai said. He then turned to Inuyasha. "Give me your sword."

Inuyasha was shocked at his teacher's request. "No way in hell!" he yelled at him.

"You've got to make a choice. You can take your chance with them," Tai said as he pointed at the yakuza members, "or you could take the risk to trust me. It's up to you."

Inuyasha was about to respond with, 'there's no way I'd give it to a demon like you,' but that's when it hit him. "Fine," Inuyasha fake grumbled but was smirking inside. "_Let's see how you like to get shocked_," Inuyasha thought to himself. He held out the sword holding the sheath but facing the hilt towards Tai.

Tai didn't waiver and reached out and grabbed the hilt. Without any trouble at all, he pulled the sword from the sheath. Inuyasha and Kagome were shocked at this. The yakuza though laughed at this because the sword was still a dull blade. "Oh look this guy now thinks he can beat us with that rotten sword," the demoness laughed. "Let's see how good you are…" she said as she charged at him.

Tai only smiled as she came at him. He started to swing Tetsusaiga. The demoness just smiled but was surprised as she watched the sword transform as it was swung at her. She was too close to dodge the blade and could only accept her fate as she felt the now strong powerful blade cut her in half.

The other yakuza demons were stunned as they watched their comrade get killed. "I don't believe it," one of them said. "You will pay for killing her."

"We will kill each and every one of you!" one of the guys said.

Tai watched as all of them charged at him. "Don't even give me any final words," Tai said with a smile, "Well these are the final words, they'll hear." Tai then shouted out, "KAZE NO KIZU!!" The yakuza could only watch as the wave of energy from the Windscar came at them. They soon found themselves overwhelmed by the sheer power of the attack.

Kagome and Inuyasha were surprised as well. Not only had Mr. Azuma wielded Tetsusaiga but he had successfully preformed the Windscar attack. "Who exactly are you, Mr. Azuma?" Inuyasha asked.

"Please call me Tai, we're not in school. That was fun to do," he responded.

"You're not answering my question, Tai," Inuyasha growled.

"And I won't," Tai said with a smile.

"How were you able to wield Tetsusaiga if you are a demon?" Inuyasha changed his question.

"You have human blood in you, don't you?" Kagome asked.

Tai clapped his hands at her. "She's smart, ya know," Tai told Inuyasha. "I'm actually a quarter human to be exact."

"So you're the child of a demon and a hanyou?" Kagome asked again.

"Another point for Kagome. You know you seem to hate school, yet biology suits you well," Tai mocked.

Inuyasha didn't know what else to ask that Tai would answer. It was then that something dawned on him. "You knew about this didn't you?"

"What makes you say that?" Tai asked with no surprise.

"I remember seeing you date book last week. For today it had said 7pm – Tokyo Park," Inuyasha said. "You knew we were going to get attacked."

"I could have been going to the festival, that's all," Tai responded.

"Yeah but the festival was in the West end of the park, your planner said Tokyo Park – East. So you knew all about this didn't you?" Inuyasha asked getting angrier.

Tai didn't respond right away this time instead he gave a small laugh. "You're finally starting to put it together," Tai said. "Yes, I knew about this well in advance."

"So are you with the yakuza or not?" Inuyasha asked.

"If I was with the yakuza, I would have let them kill you tonight but I didn't. Not to mention unlike those losers, I knew you'd be human tonight. You become human on the night of the new moon."

"So if you're not with the yakuza, what are you psychic?" Kagome asked. She didn't get a response though. "If you know all this before hand, when will the next attack come?"

"That's easy. Next Monday," he told her.

"How do we know we can trust you?"

"Like I told you before, I can not tell you to trust me, you must decide for yourselves. I can only tell you that the next attack will come next Monday night at 9 o'clock back here in the park," he told them. "Don't even think about trying to avoid this fight, you won't be able to, no matter how hard you try. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to be going."

"You're not going anywhere yet, I still have some questions for you," Inuyasha said as he stepped forward but was met by Tetsusaiga's blade.

"Did you forget, I still have this," Tai said with a grin. "The sword's pretty strong but I've seen better."

"Tetsusaiga is the strongest sword there is!" Inuyasha said.

"Maybe when it was first made. This sword was made around the time you were born if not earlier. And your about 200, so add 500 onto that and this sword was made at least 700 years ago. Don't you think there would be a better sword made in that time," Tai stated. "I'll have to see about bringing it, its not actually mine so I'd have to borrow it." He may have said borrow but Inuyasha could tell he meant it more like steal it for a while. "Now I'm going. Bye," Tai then threw Tetsusaiga at Kagome. Inuyasha turned fearing the worst. He was grateful at the sight he saw. Tetsusaiga's blade was buried in the tree next to Kagome a good foot or so away from her body. Inuyasha quickly turned around to find Tai but he was gone. 

Inuyasha turned around and pulled Tetsusaiga out of the tree. He just looked at the blade for a bit before returning it to its sheath. "Let's go home," Inuyasha said. With that the couple walked out of the parked headed for the safety of home.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

And so ends another chapter. I hope the long wait was worth it. Once again its really late and I'm tired so no referrals. I will say though that I mixed up the names of the upcoming chapters so here are the names and join me next time for:

**Chapter 35: Timing Is Everything** (in case you forgot, this is the chapter you will hate me for. EVIL CLIFFHANGER!!!)**  
Chapter 36: Identity Exposed  
Chapter 37: Secrets Revealed**

Please review, I wanna break 1000.


	36. Chapter 35 Timing is Everything

I'll be honest. The night after posting the last chapter, I almost wanted to cry. My email had no new emails from ff.net telling me people had reviewed. The only emails I had received had been from those on my mailing list. Well before I cried I decided to check ff.net and sure enough I actually did have reviews, almost 20 to be exact. It seems ff.net was acting up. I'm still getting email notification of the reviews made during that time. lol. Well here's some responses:

**_FluffyPrincess_** - sorry but as you'll see I did skip over the rest of IY's human night. Don't worry there will still be a little more fluff later on.

**_b00kperson_** - I think everyone made the mistake but when I said about 1000 reviews I hadn't meant by the next chapter, I meant by the end of the story and I think that its really possible. As for how much left, without my list in front of me I'm guessing 8-9 chapters and epilogue.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - I know you hate cliffys but I had to do it. Besides what do you think about the fact that I'm gonna have Kouga come back (not in this chapter but later on)?

**_Sango13_** - You think I'm evil just because I mention that this is going to be a cliffy, wait till you read this chapter. Muw ha ha ha ha (*or insert your own evil laugh here*).

**_DarkInuyasha_** - No, INUFAN123 didn't review. I'm actually missing the comedy from her. Her friend says that she'll be leaving us alone from now on.

**_exsanguination_** - Just to correct one thing about your review, Tai is a quarter human, not a quarter demon.

**_Destinys Warrior_** - Tai the son of Sess and Naraku?!? EWWWW!! How could you think that. You right that is just wrong but it was a good laugh. lol :)

**IMPORTANT NOTES: **First off, I won't update until at least Monday( if not later). This is because as anime club president I will be spending my weekend watching all of Nadesico and the movie. Also a friend of mine that moved away 2 years ago is in visiting so I'm spending some time with him. Secondly, this is the other song chapter with the song in the background, though I did cut the song short. Lastly, I think I made a mistake with my comment at the end of the last chapter. I was hoping for 1000 reviews by the end of the story, not just for the last chapter. lol. Well on with the story and horrible cliffhanger.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or the song that I'm using. That's by Nickelback.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 35: Timing is Everything

Just over a week had passed since the incident in the park. It had been pretty stressful for both Inuyasha and Kagome. They were leaving school when Kagome's friends stopped them and pulled Kagome aside.

"Kagome you have to come with us to the mall," Eri told her friend.

"Yeah, they just got in a whole load of cool stuff," Ayumi said.

Kagome wasn't sure. She looked back at Inuyahsa, "What about Inuyasha?" she asked her friends

"This is a girl's day out. Besides we hardly get to see you anymore. You're spending all your free time with Inuyasha," Yuka said. "Please?"

Kagome had to admit since Inuyasha had been living with her she had seen less and less of her friends. It wasn't that she didn't want to be around them it was just that she liked to be around Inuyasha. "Let me go tell, Inuyasha," Kagome told her friends and then turned and walked over to Inuyasha. "I'm gonna go with my friends. They want to do some girl stuff so you can't come, okay?"

"Fine," Inuyasha said a bit sad. He didn't want her to go without him but he also knew how she felt about her friends. "How long are you going to be gone?"

"Only a couple of hours, I'll see you when I get home," Kagome said a she quickly gave him a peck on the cheek and ran of to her friends. As she walked off, Inuyasha noticed that he was also holding her backpack. It reminded of how he had sometimes carried the horrible thing for her in the past. When Kagome finally disappeared from his view, he turned around and headed towards the shrine.

*****

Mrs. Higurashi could only watch as Inuyasha paced back and forth on the carpet. It was 7 o'clock and Kagome still hadn't gotten home. She knew that Kagome could sometimes lose track of time when with her friends but she hadn't been able to get that through to Inuyasha. He had been fine while playing games with Souta. The boy had been happy cause he hadn't really spent much time with his idol since his father had returned but Souta and Inuyasha had played video games since Inuyasha had gotten home until about 10 minutes ago with only a break for supper. Souta's father then had taken him out from some ice cream and possible to rent another video game so that left Inuyasha at home with herself. It was then that Inuyasha realized that Kagome had still not come home and he started to get worried. He tried to stay calm but he just couldn't. This was the night that Inuyasha was supposed to fight with the yakuza again so he was getting extremely worried. She felt bad for the boy but she couldn't do anything to get him to relax. 

Mrs. Higurashi then looked at the time and noticed that it was now, quarter after 7. "Inuyasha, I'm have to go now. There's a PTA meeting at your school tonight at 7:30 so I have to leave," she told him. She knew that he would just get worse when she left. "Trust me, just stay here and Kagome will come home. Just wait here for her, don't go running out or no one will be here when she gets back and she might get worried, okay?"

Inuyasha was barely listening to Kagome's mother but he had understood her message. He slowly nodded in agreement. He watched as Mrs. Higurashi walked out the door. Now he was on his own worrying like crazy about Kagome.

*****

Inuyasha had been true to his word and hadn't left the house no matter how much he wanted to though he had kept Tetsusaiga at his side incase of anything. It would have taken him too much time to track down Kagome and by that time she could be home. He didn't want her to worry about her entire family as much as he had been worrying about her.

Kagome finally came home shortly before 9 o'clock. She entered her house to find it empty except for a furious hanyou. He was so mad that the disguise spell was totally gone by then. "WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!?" Inuyasha yelled at her when he first saw her come through the door.

Kagome wasn't the calmest at that point either. She had been on her feet the last few hours and wanted to come home and relax. It seems though that wasn't going to happen. "I was with my friends!" Kagome said back in a slightly raised voice.

"You said a couple of hours. You've been gone over 5!" Inuyasha yelled back.

"Well sorrrryyy. My friends wanted to have a good time and we lost track of time," Kagome replied.

"That's no excuse you should have been home here a lot sooner," Inuyasha told her.

"Well excuse me for trying to have a life!" Kagome yelled right back at him. At this point, her temper was reaching its breaking point.

"Instead of trying to have a life you should have gotten your ass back here!" Inuyasha yelled in return.

"You can't tell me how to run my life," with that Kagome took off out the front door. She did that for two reasons. First she wanted to prove that she could do what she wanted with her life and secondly she wanted to get away from Inuyasha. She was just so mad at him at this point.

How the hell'd we wind up like this  
Why weren't we able  
To see the signs that we missed  
And try to turn the tables  
I wish you'd unclench your fists  
And unpack your suitcase  
Lately there's been too much of this  
But don't think it's too late

Inuyasha wasn't sure what to do at this point. He was mad at Kagome for coming home so late but he still cared for her. He didn't like fighting with her but he didn't like to just give in to her arguments. He'd be admitting he was wrong at that won't work with his pride. Besides he was still thoroughly convinced that it wasn't his fault, that Kagome was to blame. So he just stood there for a few minutes. As time went by Inuyasha thought more about the argument and the more he thought about it the more his head hurt. That was because part of him was believing that Kagome was right. It finally came down that he believe both of them were to blame. Kagome was wrong in the fact that she was gone for so long without letting them know and he was wrong for trying to keep Kagome from having a life. With that notion in mind, he quickly set out after Kagome once again. He and Kagome had totally forgotten about the run in with the yakuza that Tai had predicted.

Nothing's wrong   
Just as long as you know that someday I will  
Someday, somehow  
I'm gonna make it alright   
But not right now  
I know you're wondering when  
You're the only one who knows that  
Someday somehow  
I'm gonna make it alright   
But not right now  
I know you're wondering when

Inuyasha followed Kagome's fresh scent as he tracked her. Because of his thinking she had a few minutes head start but Inuyasha was catching up. He could smell salt mixed in with her scent which only meant one thing, she was crying. The entire time following her he didn't care who got in his way. If they were in his path he either jumped clear over them or shoved them right out of his way.

When he finally caught up to Kagome, she was in the park sitting down crying. Kagome didn't notice him until he was right in front of him. Kagome quickly stood up still crying, "Inuyasha, go. I need some time alone."

"No, I won't go," Inuyasha said firmly but not yelling.

"Inuyasha, I know I should have called and said that I would be later but that still doesn't mean you rule my life. I can do what I…." Kagome didn't get a chance to finish as Inuyasha pulled her to him. He didn't want the fight to continue so he figured the best way to end it for now. They were both too wrapped up in each to hear some small noises around them.

Well I'd hope that since we're here anyway  
That we could end up saying   
Things we've always needed to say  
So we could end up staying  
Now the story's played out like this  
Just like a paperback novel  
Let's rewrite an ending that fits  
Instead of a Hollywood horror

Inuyasha and Kagome were quickly pulled out of their own little world as Inuyasha felt Tetsusaiga pulled from his waist. He saw it get flung at least a hundred yards away. They looked around and noticed that they were now surrounded by five demons. One of them had the ability to control some of the trees in the park. Inuyasha knew this because it had been a tree branch that had grabbed and flung Tetsusaiga. Even without this sword Inuyasha acted like his cocky self. "So we have some more yakuza rejects. Are you guys ever going to give up?"

"Yeah, we'll give up when you're dead," one of them said.

"And lucky for us that will be tonight because without your sword you're nothing," the tree demon said. 

"We'll see about that," Inuyasha said as he quickly charged at them.

*****

Tai quickly exited the school building. "_Damn PTA meetings_," he thought to himself. Because he was a teacher he was required to attend and it had ended up going longer than expected. With a quick glance at his watch he saw that it was now almost 9:30. "_Shit, I was supposed to be in the park at 9. I was supposed to help Inuyasha fight more of the yakuza_," Tai thought as he ran towards the park using his demon speed. "_It should still be alright. There are 5 demons and Inuyasha has Tetsusaiga. They shouldn't have been too much trouble_." Tai tried reassuring himself. "_The battle's probably already over and Inuyasha and Kagome are back at home_."

When Tai arrived at the park he already knew that part of his thinking was right. The battle was over but nothing was right. There had been a terrible battle at the park and it seems that Tai's role had been more important then he had thought. With just the scent from the air he could tell what had occurred and none of it was good. Tai didn't waste much time, there was only one thing left to do and so he set out to do it.

*****

Sango was just coming in off of guard duty when she saw Midoriko in front of the house. It was night and usually Midoriko had gone to sleep by now but for some reason she was standing in front of the house. Sango made her way to talk to the miko. 

"Midoriko is something the matter?" Sango asked as she got closer but received no response. Sango was about to ask her again but it was then that she noticed the look on Midoriko's face. She looked as if something terrible had happened. "What's wrong?" Sango asked stuttering. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the answer

"It's Inuyasha and Kagome," Midoriko replied.

"What's happened to them?" Sango almost yelled in worrying for her friends.

"For the past few months, they have been fighting a large gang of demons know as the yakuza. Usually the fights were not too hard but this fight is far different."

"How?" Sango asked wondering as to how Inuyasha could have had trouble with a few demons.

"It was a sneak attack. To start off with they were able to get Tetsusaiga away from him," Midoriko replied. "These demons were very powerful much more powerful then the others from the yakuza."

"What happened? I can tell something bad has happened," Sango said.

How the hell did we wind up like this   
Why weren't we able   
To see the signs that we missed   
And try to turn the tables   
Now the story's played out like this   
Just like a paperback novel

Midoriko took a breath before speaking her next sentence. "Inuyasha has become full demon."

"His demon blood has taken over him?" Sango asked getting far more worried. "What about Kagome? Can't she just use the subduing spell to snap him out of it?"

"The subduing spell was lost when she placed a disguise spell on the beads," Midoriko told her.

"I hope Inuyasha snaps out of it and Kagome doesn't get hurt," Sango said hopefully. 

"Kagome is the reason that Inuyasha has succumb to his demon blood," Midoriko said.

"You mean to tell me that Kagome got Inuyasha angry and that's why he's full demon?" Sango almost yelled at the miko.

"No, Inuyasha's anger at the demons is what cause him to become full demon."

"Then why did say it was because of Kagome," Sango said interrupting her.

Let's rewrite an ending that fits   
Instead of a Hollywood horror

Midoriko took a breath before answering Sango. "Kagome's dead."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

****Well all of you who said you didn't mind cliffhangers, Do you still feel that way? I know you all hate me for this chapter. That is why I'm following JadeWings's example and going to hide in my new bomb shelter. But I leave everyone with one final question:

**WHO IS TAI AZUMA?** (Everyone go ahead and make a guess. Don't worry about ruining it. His identity will be revealed next chapter. Also don't think too much about the evidence from last chapter. That requires my own explaination.)

  
Well I will go ahead and make a referral. So here:

**_Thou Shalt Not Hate Winter_** - by _SnowShadowuser_ storyid=1006731 - Nice little winter fluff story. 

AMV: "_**Lord of the Animes: Fellowship of the Anime**_" by _Murf _www animemusicvideos org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=9080 Another great parody trailer. Enjoy.

So be sure to join me next time for:

**Chapter 36: Identity Exposed**

Remember to review. Thanks. Now, I'm going to my bomb shelter. The only way to open it back up it to hit the review button. :)


	37. Chapter 36 Identity Exposed

I'm sorry for taking so long. If anyone out there is an author with a current story or looked at the first page you know that ff.net had some problems. That is the first reason I didn't update. The entire time that it wasn't working, I didn't write the next chapter. This is another big reason and the reason behind that was me being a lazy SOB. Yeah I know. Once ff.net started working again, they were spamming my mail box with review by that time there had actually once been about 75 reviews (which is really great) but I only received about the first 5-10 of them but those were constantly repeated. In affect, I was sent over 300 reviews. That was really getting on my nerves. Well I finally wrote this chapter and I know you can't wait to read it. I'm just going to make some quick responses. The announcement as to who was right about Tai will be made at the end of the chapter. Do you think I'm going to give it away before?

**_Ai_** - You really want this chapter, don't you? Thank you for review multiple times just to let me know. 

**_Kagura_girl_** - Sorry to hear that your friends like it just cause Kag is dead. Well I hope everyone likes this chapter.

**_Kai-Yasha626_** - I know cliffhangers are bad but the worse they are the better outcry of fans you get. I got 86 from this chapter alone. Thats more than I've ever received. It goes to show you how much people hate these but they can be a great story telling tool. :)

**NOTE TO EVERYONE** - Well I think its obvious to say that you all hated me after the last chapter. If everyone can recall all the way back to my first cliffhanger (the one with Inutaisho) when you made an outcry then I mentioned that if you hated that one then surely you'd be calling for my death later on. Well last chapter was that chapter and I did get a few death threats (not real ones, at least that's what I hope) and one person said they'd commit suicide. I hope you're still here for this chapter. This chapter ends in a bit of a cliffhanger but none from now on will be as bad as the last one. As I see it there is at least 2 cliffhangers left. This chapter and the one following the next one. As for those of you who say I can't kill Kagome *quickly takes out to home-made author's license* this proves that I can. Thanks for everything. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the IY gang but I do own Tai so start your bids now (or at least when you find out who he is).

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 36: Identity Exposed

Midoriko took a breath before answering Sango. "Kagome's dead."

Sango felt tears come to her eyes. "Please tell me you kidding," Sango stammered out. "Say that Kagome is still alive."

"I'm sorry Sango. I really wish I could," Midoriko said. She wanted to cry for Kagome as well but she had to be strong. She not only had to be strong for Sango but for Inuyasha. To hope that he would return to his normal self. She kept her hopes in the one person that could help them now, Tai Azuma.

*****

Tai was running as fast as his he could. He looked quickly at his belt. There stood a sword which he happened to borrow. It was the sword which he had claimed to better than Tetsusaiga. It wasn't his and luckily its owner wasn't home so he was able to sneak in and 'borrow' the sword. He kept it safely hidden from view by a longer coat. Unfortunately this had taken an extra twenty minutes and he had to go in the opposite direction that Inuyasha had gone. He had considered transforming into his demon form to go faster but decided against it because many would have seen him. That was the good thing about being three quarters demon. He had a demon form but couldn't stay in it forever. He had a limited amount of time he could stay in his demon form.

Tai wasn't caring much about his demon form. He was worried much more with Inuyasha's. This time was different than his others – he could tell. Inuyasha hadn't killed all the demons right away. From the battle scene it was apparent that Inuyasha had managed to defeat one of the demons before being driven mad. Two more demon bodies had been at the scene but they had been badly torn apart. That meant that they had been killed when Inuyasha was full demon. The other two were a different matter. They had run and apparently Inuyasha hadn't killed them right away. He was keeping up with them but was slowly ripping each apart. Tai knew why this was. Inuyasha's demon side very rarely came out and just usually hungered for blood. This time was different. Inuyasha's whole being had loved Kagome. His human side loved her and wanted to be with her while his demon side felt the same way and had practically accepted her as his mate. So when he saw Kagome dead, Inuyasha's demon blood took over and the demon side of him was angry as well. His demon side wanted the yakuza to die slow and painful deaths which is what Inuyasha was doing. Tai only hoped that he could set things right before Inuyasha killed the two remaining yakuza. He didn't know what the demon side would do once finished with them.

*****

Kagome slowly opened her eyes. She wasn't totally sure where she was. She took a while to think back as to what had happened. Her and Inuyasha had been ambushed by 5 members of the yakuza. Before she had even realized that they were there, they had disarmed Inuyasha of Tetsusaiga. That didn't stop Inuyasha though he was determined to fight them. The demons were about as strong as Inuyasha and since they outnumbered him she had been worried about him from the beginning. He was actually able to catch one of them off guard at the start and killed that one right off. The others seemed mad but they hadn't allowed themselves to be distracted by their anger. The four coordinated their attacks on Inuyasha and usually one if not two would attack from behind while the others attacked in front. Kagome couldn't do much to help but tried to warn him when they tried to attack from behind. At first the demons didn't seem to overly care but as the battle had worn on and because of Kagome's help they hadn't made too much headway. So finally they had grown tired of her. They tried their usual attack with two charging in front while one attacked from behind. She had been to busy in warning Inuyasha that she hadn't noticed the fourth demon missing. That demon had been the tree demon from before and at that time she was using her powers to once again control the trees in the park. Kagome hadn't realized it until she felt herself get stabbed in the back. A tree branch sharpened to a point had speared her from behind. The second that blood started to seep from the wound Inuyasha had smelt it and turned to find her lying on the ground. He ran over to her quickly hold her head in his one hand while holding his hand over the wound trying to stop the bleed. It was no use though, she knew she was dying. The branch and not only pierced her in the back but had managed to come out the other side.

"You'll be fine, Kagome. I'll make sure of it," Inuyasha had told her.

"No, I won't," Kagome said, "and you know it. I just want to let you know. I'll always love you."

"I love you too. That's why I don't want you to die," Inuyasha said but his pleas were unsuccessful. Kagome soon fell lifeless in his arms.

That was the last thing Kagome remembered. "Am I dead?" Kagome asked out loud. She finally looked around surveying her surroundings. She was in the park. She was lying against the very tree that had killed her. She looked around for Inuyasha but he was no where to be found. She did see two of the demons that Inuyasha had been fighting. They were torn apart into horrible pieces. Blood was everywhere. She felt like she wanted to puke. She knew what this meant. Inuyasha had gone crazy with madness and his demon side had taken over. Kagome slowly stood up and noticed that her clothes were covered in blood. She wasn't totally sure at this point if she was dead or alive but that didn't matter to her. If she was dead then she must be a ghost. Either way she was determined to help Inuyasha in whatever way she could.

*****

Inuyasha gave the final blow to one of the demons he had been chasing. The park was big enough that they were still in it though he didn't care at all. All he cared about was the final remaining demon. The tree demon was the only one left and had decided to make a final stand for his life. Inuyasha planned on taking extra care with this one. He had been the one to actually give Kagome her final blow, so he would die extra slowly and definitely extra painfully.

"I'm gonna have fun killing you," Inuyasha said evilly.

"You're not going to be able to defeat me. There's no way," the demon replied.

"Bold words coming from a man that was running just a little while ago," Inuyasha said. The demon didn't know what to reply. Inuyasha noticed his hesitation and used this to his advantage. He quickly charged and ripped a few more wounds open on the demon's chest. The guy already had too many wounds to count. Inuyasha didn't stop there though. He quickly got behind the demon and added some claw marks to his back. Then he continued to attack him everyone on his body. The legs, the arms, his face were all bloody as Inuyasha continue his torture. He was just about to continue before a voice yelled out.

"INUYASHA!!" Tai yelled.

Inuyasha looked to the intruder on his fun. He wasn't pleased to see Tai. "You're not going to stop me from killing this scum," Inuyasha said. While Inuyasha was talking to Tai, the demon quickly ran over to Tai thinking that he had been saved.

When the demon reached Tai he looked up from the ground and offered his thanks. Tai just looked down at the demon and frowned. "You shouldn't be thanking me," with that said Tai deliver a swift and hard kick to the demon's stomach sending him towards Inuyasha once again. "I don't care what the hell you do with this piece of shit but if you're going to kill him just do it. I don't want anyone wandering here to see this. After that, I won't let you go any further from here until you revert to your normal self."

"Who says I'm going to revert back," the red eyed Inuyasha said back as he kicked the demon below him.

"Well if you don't regress back to your self, I'll have to use force," Tai said as he reached for the handle of his sword.

"This is definitely going to be fun," Inuyasha said as he quickly brought his claws down on the tree demon finishing him off at last. Inuyasha then stood and looked at Tai. "I never did like you so this is going to be quite fun." With that Inuyasha ran full speed at Tai.

Tai was taken by surprise and was thrown back almost twenty feet into a tree. The attack hurt him a bit but was no where near enough to stop this fight. Tai decided to not use the sword right away and see how well he could fare against a crazed Inuyasha. If anyone would have been there for the fight it would seem but a blur. Tai and Inuyasha clashed each getting in a punch here or a kick there but neither gaining any significant ground. Inuyasha was sent barreling to the ground only to bounce back up and punch Tai higher in the air. Tai easily landed on his feet and the battle continued unchanged. Both opponents seemed to be enjoying the fight. They were well matched. Inuyasha didn't seem to be holding back and other than the sword Tai wasn't either.

Tai had gotten so wound up in the excitement of the fight that he had forgotten about others possibly wandering into this fight. Though it was now past 10 o'clock and it was unlikely someone would show, he didn't want to take the risk. After sending Inuyasha flying into the air, Tai stopped his attacks and looked at Inuyasha as he landed. When he landed, Inuyasha just stared back at his opponent. "Lose the will to fight?" Inuyasha goaded.

"Not totally. This fight was a lot of fun but I will ask you one last time – revert to your normal self or I will do it for you!" Tai demanded.

"I don't think you can," the crazed demon said making it clear that he wasn't going away.

"I didn't want it to come to this," Tai said as he drew the sword. Inuyasha used the drawing of the sword to attack Tai sending him slightly out of sight.

"That swords pretty weak if you can't draw it in time to face an enemy," Inuyasha said as he stood tall and proud. Inuyasha was so wrapped up in himself that he didn't see that attack until it was too late. He couldn't see Tai but that wasn't his concern. His concern was the huge wave of light blue energy as it struck him. Inuyasha could feel himself really start to hurt from that attack. What was left of his shirt from his previous fights were now gone. His pants were in shreds. Inuyasha got up and ran at his adversary and attacked with his already blood soaked claws. Tai couldn't dodge it in time but did parry the attack with the sword. Inuyasha claws just struck against the cold steel of the blade. Tai quickly brought the sword down send hundreds of pin like needles at Inuyasha. Once again Inuyasha felt the pain of the attack. This attack sent Inuyasha crashing through two nearby trees and indenting the third. 

It took Inuyasha a bit to get himself out of the tree. He had had enough with this fight. Even if it killed him he was going to defeat Tai. Tai could see the fiery look in Inuyasha's eyes. He knew that he would have to ground Inuyasha once and for all. This attack would decide the fight once and for all. As if on queue the fighters charged at one another at the same time. The next few moments seemed to go by in slow motion. Inuyasha and Tai got closer and closer. Inuyasha had his sharp claws ready to rip apart Tai while Tai was ready to bring the sword down on Inuyasha once and for all. "Get ready to die!" Inuyasha said.

"Crawl on the ground!" Tai yelled as his sword got closer and closer to Inuyasha's body. The two deadly attacks were already in motion. Nothing would stop them now. Well just about nothing.

"STOP!!" a voice screamed as loud as possible.

If the fight between Inuyasha and Tai had been on video, it seemed as if the viewer had paused it. Both fighters stood still with their attacks less than a foot from contacting one another. Slowly they turned their heads to see the source of the yelling. There stood Kagome at the very edge of their battle field.

It seemed impossible to Inuyasha. She seemed like a ghostly apparition in front of him. He didn't know whether she was real or not. She should be dead. What was going on? Inuyasha thought on it very shortly before deciding to just yell out, "Who are you? Are you one of the yakuza here to distract me?" Inuyasha all but yelled. His demon blood was still in control.

Kagome slowly walked towards Inuyasha with her hands behind her back. "Inuyasha, I know you're in there. It's me, Kagome," she told him.

"Kagome died. What are you then?" Inuyasha demanded getting angry at her but he stood his ground and didn't back up as she approached him.

"I don't know Inuyasha. Maybe I'm dead; maybe I'm here just to help you. I don't really know," she said as she got close to him. "All I do know is that I have to give this to you." As fast as she could she pulled her hands from behind her. Inuyasha thinking this was an attack quickly brought out his hands to block whatever weapon she was attacking him with. As soon as his hands touch the object he knew it was no attack. His hands were holding onto Tetsusaiga. He could feel his demon blood slowly receding and balancing restoring in his entire body. "Are you okay, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked him.

"Yeah I'm fine but what about you?" Inuyasha said as he quickly reached out to grab her arm to make sure she was really there in front of him. To his surprise, he grabbed onto a real flesh and blood arm. He could feel a pulse through her wrist. That could only mean, "Kagome, you alive." No more had those words come out his mouth than he scooped her up and hugged her as if afraid that he would lose her at any second.

"But what about my wound?" Kagome wondered out loud. Inuyasha set her down and checked her back. The wound in the back was totally gone. Likewise Kagome checked the front to find the same thing. "How?" was all that came to her lips.

"I don't know or care. I'm just happy that you're alive and here with me," Inuyasha said.

"This has definitely been a weird day," Kagome said.

"You don't know the half of it," Inuyasha said. Kagome looked at him in confusion. "While I was a full demon, I knew exactly what was going on unlike before. I don't know why. I'm just worried."

Tai, who had been ignored until now, spoke up. "That's because you as a whole wanted the same thing," Tai said and they still look a little confused. "In the past, Inuyasha, your demon side has only emerged when you didn't want to die and were in die straits but that didn't mean your entire self agreed upon everything. When Kagome was killed, all of you wanted to kill those responsible. Your demon side being the strongest in you, especially in your anger, took over but since your whole being wanted that in a way you were still present. I guess that even you whole being wanted to fight me. That's nice to know." Tai's last sentence was sarcastic but Inuyasha didn't care. He really didn't like this guy. "Well if you will excuse me I must get this sword back to its owner before it is discovered missing."

Inuyasha growled at Tai. "You're not going anywhere just yet," Inuyasha said. Kagome was about to question him about his behavior but he continued. "Where did you get that sword?"

Kagome was surprised at this question and answered for Tai. "He said he stole it. You already know that," Kagome said totally confused at Inuyasha's conduct.

"He knows what I mean," Inuyasha growled even louder. "Now tell me where did you get that sword!?" Inuyasha just about yelled.

Tai gave a small chuckle at this. "I was really hoping you wouldn't notice but I guess you would notice it," Tai said and then took a deep breath. He didn't say anything for a few seconds which just added to Inuyasha's irritation. "It currently belongs to my father."

Inuyasha's growling seemed to intensify exponentially. Kagome looked at the sword. Though she could only see a bit of it, she didn't see what Inuyasha was so upset about. "What's so special about the sword, Inuyasha?"

"Don't you recognize it, Kagome?" he asked her. Before she could really take another look Inuyasha answered his own question. "That's Toukijin!"

Kagome gasped as the realization hit her. She understood why Inuyasha was now mad at Tai. She understood who Tai was. Then another thing hit her. She looked towards Tai, "Thank you," she said simply.

Both Inuyasha and Tai were surprised to hear this. "Huh? What the hell are you thanking him for?" Inuyasha asked getting angry at even Kagome.

Tai on the other hand nodded to her. It seemed he understood what she meant. "You don't get it do you, Inuyasha? He isn't here to hurt us," Kagome said. She then turned back to Mr. Azuma. "You have it with you, don't you? You have Tenseiga?"

Inuyasha finally understood what Kagome meant. That fact that Kagome was standing before him alive and well meant that Tai had it. He turned to Tai as well. "You mean this thing?" Tai asked as he brought out the other fang from within his coat and just seemed to twirl it between his fingers as if it were nothing. "Yeah I have this sword."

"Thank you for bringing me back to life," Kagome said. 

"Don't mention it," Tai said in a bit of a hurry. "Listen I don't meant to be rude but I have to get these back before my father notices they are missing."

Tai was just about to turn and leave before a fourth voice spoke up, "Too late."

Tai stopped dead in his tracks. He then groaned. "This isn't good," he said.

"Who's there?" Kagome called out but no responses.

"If it had been my father I could have dealt with it. He'd yell at me and maybe give me a hard punch, but no it has to be worse," Tai said. "I'm gonna be pestered about this forever. The only person worse than my father – my mother."

"Who are you!?" Inuyasha yelled out. He couldn't seem to find the scent. All he could smell was the blood around him.

"I'm hurt that you don't remember me, Inuyasha," the feminine voice said.

This time Inuyasha knew where the voice was coming from. The woman made her appearance the way she always did. Inuyasha just looked up and growled, "Kagura."

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well now everyone knows. Tai is the son of Sesshy and Kagura (my favorite coupling, at least when it comes to Sess). Now for who got it right. This is only for those who voiced their idea last chapter. If you mentioned it before then I'm sorry for not mentioning you. I only went back so far.

**Guessed both parents right: **Ai, Chellek, Ryguy5387, and hikariko (though she said it was Sess or Kagura's kid, I still gave her credit)

**Guessed Sess: **Ash, JadedKatrina, and Ladkaa28. Others guessed this a while back sorry for not mentioning.

**Guess Kagura: **ShadowRavinCroft (you were the only one to guess Kagura by herself last chapter). Some did guess a little while ago. I believe giggles and Silver Warrior did. 

Well like I said. It was a cliffhanger. Not a huge one but it was one. I don't totally know what to say. I'm really tired. Its 5AM and I'm not going to get any sleep, at least not right now. Well I can say I'm only 11 reviews away from 1000 now. Well I'm going to head out for now. I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 37: Secrets Revealed**


	38. Chapter 37 Secrets Revealed

Sorry about the long wait yet again. It almost had been longer cause I ended up falling asleep at around 10 pm (really early for me). I then woke up just shy of midnight so I finished up this chapter. 

**_Inu Faceness_** - Thank you so much for all the reviews. I really enjoy them. Can you share some of the popcorn and Coke?

**_FukashiOni_** - Thanks for your review. In a way isn't Tai kind of related to Naraku through Kagura though? :) As for Azuma, its pretty much a fake name. I just pulled it out of my mind anyway.

**_Weirdo's Rule_** - I think you were the only one to understand Tai's quarter human side, or at least voice his idea of it.

**_siliven_** - I must say I found your review to be quite rude. I understand you might not like the Sess/Kagura pairing but don't be a rude jackass about it. Yes, Kagura might hate Sess but that doesn't mean that there is no chance what so ever that it couldn't happen especially since Naraku is dead. The only reason Kagura hated Sess was because he wouldn't help her escape from Naraku. Well she's now free and you never know what I might have in store. I mentioned before in an earlier chapter that I'm a fan of the Sess/Kagura pairing (I'm not the only one that feels this way). That is why I made it this way. If you have a problem or don't agree with the story, do it in a civilized manner, don't be a jackass. 

**_Ai_** - I know I shouldn't be going to sleep around 5 AM (and its almost 4 AM this time around) but being in college helps out a bit. I don't have class sometimes until 11, which is really nice. This week is great though because I'm on spring break. :)

**_Ks-Starshine _** - CONGRATS. If I can count correctly (on occasions I can't), you were my 1000th reviewer. Thank you very much.

**IMPORTANT. EVERYONE MUST READ**: Okay a few things to take care of. First off, I got quite a few comments from people asking how Tai can be 3/4 human with 2 demon parents. There is one thing wrong with that though. TAI IS 3/4 DEMON!!! NOT 3/4 HUMAN!! I'm sorry chapter after chapter people keep making that mistake and its got on my nerves. I'm not blaming people that made that last chapter I'm just venting a bit. As for how he can be 3/4 demon, you'll find out in the chapter. Secondly, a few people openly admitted that they didn't like the Sess/Kagura pairing. I respect your views but when the review came as siliven's did, I didn't care for it at all. His was more of a flame. I didn't laugh at this one like I did with Inufan. I got pissed at this one. If you don't like what I do, please feel free to mention it but don't be a total ass about it. One person said and I quote: "Sesshoumaru and Kagura? Ew. I so can't even imagine that pairing. Oh, well. Your story. Still; ew. Please continue soon. I so want to know how THAT happened." That is the kind that I like. She didn't approve but kept an open mind about it. I admire that. Thank you very much. I do have another note at the end of the story about the Sess/Kagura pairing, that I want you to read when finished with the chapter. Now on with the story:

Disclaimer: I don't own IY or any other character's except Tai. Don't mention that to Sess and Kagura, they might get mad and come after me. 

A Wish From the Heart

  
Chapter 37: Secrets Revealed

**IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE IMPORTANT NOTE, GET BACK UP AND READ IT!**

Inuyasha just looked up and growled, "Kagura."

Kagura jumped off of her big feather and it quickly shrunk to normal size. "It's good to see you too Inuyasha," she said as she placed the feather in her hair. That was the only part of her that was normal as far as Inuyasha and Kagome could remember. Instead of her usual kimono that she always wore, she was wearing a black blouse and a pair of jean shorts. She even looked a bit older than before. It had been approximately 400 years though it looked like she had barely aged 10 years.

"So what do you want?" he asked not taking his eyes off of her. He still didn't trust her.

"I'm here to see my son," she said looking at Tai. "Is it wrong for a mother to come see her son?" She asked over-dramatically. 

"I have a hard time believing that you and my half-brother are his parents," Inuyasha said. "Last I remember you hated just about everyone. I don't think I know of one single person you liked."

"True, I was like that but if you remember, the last thing you know of happened 400 years ago so you're a bit out touch," Kagura told him. "I did hate Sesshomaru simply because he refused to help me escape from Naraku. As for hating you, I wouldn't call it hate. I did what Naraku told me. Now I won't say that I didn't like trying to kill you, it was after all quite fun but as they say, things change."

Kagome decided to speak up as well. "So you went from hating Sesshomaru to being in love with him?" Kagome asked totally confused.

"Yeah, I know it's really confusing but things will work out over time," Kagura assured her then added under her breath, "I actually have you guys to thank for that." Unfortunately for her even without demon hearing, they had all heard her. She then put on a fake smile as to pass it off as it was nothing. "Anyway though, I think we should worry about other matters."

"Yeah," Tai said a little nervous. "I guess father is mad at me, not only for stealing his swords, but also for screwing up."

"Well I wouldn't say he's mad. He didn't like the fact that you took his swords but that's overlooked because of its necessity. As for screwing up, you didn't," she told him bluntly.

"What do you mean? I was supposed to be here to help Inuyasha and Kagome and because of me being late, Kagome died and Inuyasha went crazy." Inuyasha and Kagome shuddered when he mentioned them.

"There's a difference between knowing what going to happen and thinking that you know. In this case, you only knew what you were supposed to know. Everything worked out in the end, didn't it," Kagura told her son. "That's why your father isn't that mad. We knew all about this. That's why we weren't at the house when you stopped by. If you would have had to ask to borrow the swords it would have only taken more time."

"So you knew about this all along and didn't tell me?!" Tai asked almost furiously.

Kagura wasn't phased at all. "Don't raise your voice to me. As it's said we can not change what is suppose to happen no matter how much we want to. You know that don't you?"

Tai just sighed. He knew his mother was correct. It almost got him mad. It was always her or his mother that was always right. "Fine, here," he said as he tossed the swords to his mother. "This is why you came here, isn't it?"

"Well partly," she said as she caught the two swords that belonged to her husband. "I also decided to see how you were doing."

"I'm still not totally convinced that you are his mother," Inuyasha said speaking up again.

"And why is that, Inuyasha?" Kagura asked.

"Tai is a quarter human yet you and my brother are full demons," Inuyasha said. Kagome was also surprised by this. She had forgotten and now Inuyasha did make sense.

"You are as slow as ever Inuyasha," Kagura said and watched as Inuyasha got angry at her. "If you remember correctly, I am a detachment of Naraku, similar to that of a child of Naraku." She hated to say that name and even more admit their connection but over time she had managed to put that part of her behind her. "Naraku was a hanyou himself when I was born, which in turn would make me a hanyou. This is proof enough of that," she said as she showed her lower back which still contains the remnants of the spider burn on her back. "It's almost all gone, I love the newer modern technology," she said with a smile.

"So what happens to you when you become human? How do you change?" Inuyasha asked.

"Unlike Naraku, I am not made of just of different demons so I don't just go to pieces. I just look the same but I'm human. You've never seen this because I kept it a secret though like Naraku I can choose when to become human," Kagura said with a smile. "Well I've spent enough time here and I can see that everything's okay now so I guess I'll go. I'm sure your uncle is looking for an explanation. Have fun," she said and disappeared on her feather as she had appeared.

"Thanks a lot," Tai said sarcastically. As soon as he turned back around Inuyasha was staring at him. If he wasn't sure if Inuyasha trusted him before he knew that he wasn't trusted now. Tai just gave a fake laugh, "I guess I have to clear some things up."

"That's an understatement," Inuyasha said rudely.

"Be nice, Inuyasha," Kagome told him.

"Don't tell me you're taking his side?" Inuyasha asked getting mad.

"Yes, I am. He saved my life so I trust him," Kagome said back. "If he wanted to do us harm that was his chance. I don't know if he could have killed you, though he had many chances in the past, but he brought me back to life. I don't think he's here to hurt us."

"Fine, whatever," Inuyasha said gruffly.

"How about we make our way out of here and I explain as we go," Tai suggested. Together the three of them started to walk out of the park. "So what do you guys want to know? I'm just warning you I won't tell you anything that would possible harm the past. I don't want you to go back and change it."

"Didn't Kagura do that when she mentioned that it was because of us that she and Sesshomaru are together?" Kagome asked.

"I don't know about that. I really don't know too much about how they got together," Tai told them. "I really wasn't ever totally intrigued to ask. I caught bits and pieces over the last 300 years but I don't want to say anything without knowing it all."

"I still have a hard time see Kagura and Sesshomaru together," Inuyasha said. "Though I never really saw him getting together with that human girl seeing as how Sesshomaru feels about humans."

"You mean Rin?" Tai asked. Inuyasha nodded. "He still doesn't like humans very much but I think he tolerates them more. Rin was the exception though. She was like a daughter to both my father and mother and she was a sister to me though I only met her in her final years. I never got to do much with her."

"I'm sure you miss her," Kagome said sympathetically. "You said before that you were about 300 years old which means that Rin was 100. I didn't think humans lived that long back then."

"Actually I'm a bit older than 300 and Rin was in her 80s when she passed away," Tai said a bit sad. "Humans didn't live that long back then but father didn't want to lose her so he kept doing what he could to help her. After so long, she finally convinced him to let her go. He didn't want to but he went along with her wishes. She was happy. She got to live more fuller a life than anyone. She was even able to see her great-grandchildren."

"Who did she get married to?" Kagome asked.

Tai gave a small laugh. "That was another one of the things father wasn't too happy about at first. When Rin got older she did some stuff on her own and she met up with Kohaku. They fell in love and married," Tai said and watched as Kagome and Inuyasha were totally surprised. "I'll tell you a little more but don't say anything, understand?" Kagome and Inuyasha nodded. "Well you see, Kohaku never really got over killing his father and fellow slayers even if they were brought back to life. He just was never up to slaying demons like the rest of his family. He sets off on his own and eventually finds Rin. When Rin told my father that she had fallen in love, he didn't mind too much. What he didn't like though was that Kohaku was the same person that kidnapped and almost killed her when Naraku was around. For the first time in her life, Rin stood up to my father and defended him. Eventually though she got her way and they lived a happy, peaceful life."

"That really nice," Kagome said happy for the couple.

"Yeah, to this day my father, mother, and I still look in on her descendants though its hard to keep track of them all."

"Do they know about you and being a demon and all?" Kagome asked.

"Actually most of them do. At least the ones that keep in the most contact. Some of them have gone off on their own," Tai said. "Though I'm technically their great, great, great…, well you get the idea, great uncle, they still just refer to me as Uncle Tai."

"Must make you feel old," Inuyasha added.

"No, not at all. Would it make you feel old if I started to call you Uncle Inuyasha," Tai said with a smirk. Inuyasha was surprised by this and tripped while walking. 

"Don't call me that. It doesn't sound right," Inuyasha said as he picked himself up. "The thing I don't understand is how are you older than me?"

"Inuyasha are you that slow?" Kagome asked. "Even I know that. You skipped 400 years so anyone born in that time is going to age, though I don't quite remember how old you are."

"He's a little bit over 200, if I remember correctly," Tai added.

"Yeah, so if you headed back in time now and just lived until this time period then you would be older than Tai," Kagome said. "Speaking of which, what does happen to us?"

Tai just smiled. "I can't tell you that. That's one of the things that I can't give away."

"So what about the others?" Kagome asked. "What about Shippo, and Kouga, and Sango and Miroku?"

"I'd love to tell you all about them but I don't think we have that much time," Tai said. It was then Kagome noticed that they were only a block from Kagome's house.

Kagome was about to ask more but Inuyasha spoke first and was very serious. "So how many more times are we going to have to worry about the yakuza?" he asked.

"If I remember correctly only once more," Tai said and that caught their undivided attention. "Its in about two weeks and its going to finish this feud once and for all. I can tell you this, get ready now. It's going to be one hell of a battle."

"About how many we talking about?" Inuyasha asked.

"500 maybe more, though most of them are very low level youkai. They're like the first batch of demons that attacked you," Tai said. "We have about 20 or so that are about as strong as Naraku and some that are even stronger. I'm not even counting the yakuza leader."

"The leader is going to show up?" Kagome asked. As far as the movies she had seen the leader never got involved and had people do it for them, ironically like Naraku.

"Inuyasha's done enough damage to warrant it so yeah. The leader's going to be the toughest," Tai said. "Inuyasha, if you train in anything, make sure you are able to block out scents."

"Why would I want to do that?" Inuyasha asked.

"You're powerful sense of smell can be a weakness and trust me the yakuza will use it against you," Tai said. He then looked up the stairs of the shrine since they had finally reached Kagome's home. "I guess I will be going. Prepare yourself Inuyasha." With that Tai simply walked away.

Kagome looked at Inuyasha, who was shirtless and his pants were in shreds. "Looks like we're going to have a fun time when we go in," she told him.

"I could just sneak us in the window," Inuyasha said.

"I don't think that will work very well," Kagome said. "We're really late getting home not to mention when mom goes to wash my clothes, she's going to wonder why I have a really big blood stain on it."

"Well then, ladies first," Inuyasha said with a smirk.

"Thanks a lot," Kagome said as they walked up the steps. "I thought you're suppose to protect me."

"From demons and other undesirables, yes, from irate parents, no," Inuyasha said. It didn't really matter though they would still face it together.

_**~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&**_

****Now with this chapter over, I shouldn't have people complaining about Tai being 3/4 human. If they do then I know who didn't read the note at the beginning. Some people might not like the explanation though but I ask you to remember, they never really did anything in the series to prove me wrong of Kagura (did they?). Now for the other important note (poll question):

**After this thing with the yakuza is over should I go into how the Sess/Kagura pairing comes about? This won't be a sequel since it'd be too short but it would extend the story a bit more. Even if I do this, I might take a small break at the end of the yakuza section.**

This story is really turning out longer than I had expected. Well I'm getting tired. I'm gonna make a quick referral then go to bed. I know this is a repeat but I have to give it:

**_Call Me Tomorrow_** by _TailFluffGirl_ storyid=1572507 This is a Sess/Kagura pairing and its probably the best I've ever read. Those of you who aren't fans of this pairing. I ask you to at least give it a try. I truly believe that you will be able to at least understand, if not like, the Sess/Kagura pairing after this story (and its still on-going). There aren't many Sess/Kagura pairings out there so I ask that everyone give this author your support. I don't want to see this author at all stop because of lack of interest (though I think she's doing good so far).

Well I hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think about my poll question. Don't forget to review either. So join me next time for:

**Chapter 38: The Sealing of the Demon Blood - Part 1 - Seeking Help** As if you can't tell, I smell cliff hanger. 


	39. Chapter 38 Sealing of Demon Blood Part 1

I really apologize for how long it took for this chapter. I am truly sorry. Last week I was just bombarded with a lot of work. I had three quizzes in one day (and these are not high school quizzes, these are college ones much tougher). Then over the weekend a friend who moved away about a year ago came in so I spent some time with him and I also took place in a bowling tournament (unfortunately everyone I was with place except me). I haven't even had time to read fanfics! Well you probably hate me for the wait and you'll also hate me for the cliffhanger at the end of this chapter. Enjoy.

**_ AriesnoShion_** - I don't think Sess will be helping out in the final battle. Yes I personally think it would be great to have the whole Inu family helping but there's reasons for everything (or at least why Sess isn't helping).

**_ ssp51201_** - Yes, Tai will be helping in the fight. I don't know how IY would be able to take on the yakuza all by himself. Even for being a powerful hanyou, I don't think he could do it all by himself.

**_ Tsukinoko1_** - Yes you are correct. The well does jump 500 years. I meant to put that in my notes but I forgot. Because of earlier miscalculations, I'm going with 400 years. I know I'm breaking away from what it is in the subs (cause I believe the dubs say 400) but I don't want to go back and start contradicting myself.

**_exsanguination_** - You may think Sess/Rin is cannon but that's only true for the viewers. While IY/Kag and Sango/Miroku are more set in stone in the anime, the Sess pairing is more open still. Be sure to check out the note right before the chapter for more info.

**_hikariko_** - Make a pairing with Tai and someone? Hmm... I haven't really thought about that yet. I might add that yet but as of right now, I have nothing on that.

**_FukashiOni_** - I'm not totally sure how Kagura acts in the dub. Sess won't really appear until I explain the Sess/Kagura pairing. As for Kanna, I believe it was mentioned in chapter 1 that she was defeated shortly before Naraku. Just for small recap, fight went like this. Gang fought Kanna won but some people hurt. Then fought Kagura, who lead them to Naraku and then fled while Naraku was busy in the fight. IY defeated Naraku.

**_LadyKaa28_** - Okay, if you remember Midoriko has a link with Kagome and Inuyasha (really with just about everyone in the IY gang but its stronger between IY and Kag) so she could tell Kagome died. As for Kanna, she's dead, if you want more of an explanation look at the previous response. As for Tai, as far as I have it planned he's an only child. I haven't really thought about giving him siblings. And Tai will help out in the final fight.

**_brazil_** - Well as for other pairing. the Miroku/Sango pairing was already covered (or at least as far as I'm going to take it). As for Kouga/Ayame I'm not really going to cover that. I don't like Kouga much so I don't really wanna go into that.

**_Selcryn_** - With the "We have 20 or so..." comment, you're just reading into it a little too far. I was referring to the fact that they have 20 or so to fight. Tai's going to help out in the final battle.

**Sesshomaru and Kagura Pairing Update:** Okay I have decided that I will most likely extend the end of the story YET AGAIN to include the explaination. We're talking about 5-10 chapters. I will be taking a break though before writing that cause that's still in the planning stages. As for those of you who say that the Sess/Kagura pairing is wrong, or goes against the anime, etc. Check out this link: http:// www. geocities. com/ sess_kagura/. I actually got this from TailFluffGirl who wrote "Call Me Tomorrow." You might recognize that title. Its the story I recommended last chapter. Well anyway, the site explains how Sess and Kagura is a very likely pairing. It even mentions something that isn't in the anime yet (its in the manga though). So no more complaining from people who don't believe.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 38: Sealing of Demon Blood - Part 1: Seeking Help  


Inuyasha had sat back and watched Kagome tell her parents about their night. Of course, she had left out the part were she died. Instead she had told them that she had been wounded and Tensaiga was able to heal her. Even though she lied there was still plenty of blood on her shirt and Mr. and Mrs. Higurashi weren't quite happy at that. Mr. Higurashi had even grabbed Inuyasha's shirt and started shouting right in his face. Inuyasha got a little scared. Demons and evil humans he could handle but parents were another thing especially Kagome's parents. It wasn't that they were overly scary or anything but he had to be careful with what he said around them. He was slightly worried that he might not be allowed to stay with them.

In the end Kagome's parents calmed down and then shocked them. "I guess I shouldn't yell at you," Kagome's father said. "As a matter of fact, thank you." They were knocked off guard by this.

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha asked.

"If you weren't here then we'd probably all be dead by now, so the fact that Kagome was just injured and you was able to be fully healed is much better than being dead. I have you to thank for that."

"You shouldn't thank me," Inuyasha said. "Tonight I allowed myself to succumb to my demon blood which is not a good thing. I don't want to know what would have happened if Tai hadn't been there to save me. I don't know what I'm going to do if that happens again."

"Inuyasha," Mrs. Higurashi said in a soothing tone. "It's not your fault. Everyone gets really angry so there's nothing to be sorry about. Have you always been this way?"

"No, my demon blood was sealed before but when I broke Tetsusaiga about a year ago, the seal was broken," Inuyasha said. "As long as I have my sword with me my blood is kept in check but if I lose it well… we know what can happen then."

"Is there any way to restore the seal?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

Inuyasha thought a little bit before answering. "Now that I think about it I don't know. I was always more worried about collecting jewel shards and as long as Tetsusaiga kept it in check I didn't worry about it."

"Well I guess if you want you might be able to find a way," she said.

"I think that would be best so that this doesn't happen again," Inuyasha said. He then turned to Kagome. "You can come if you want. You don't have to if you don't want to."

"I'll go, Inuyasha. I've always gone with you on your little adventures before I don't see why not now. Besides we haven't been back to the Feudal Era in a while so we might run into some of the others."

"Okay, since its pretty late now," Inuyasha said as he noticed to the clock which was almost midnight, "we'll leave around noon tomorrow."

"Yes that would be best," Mr. Higurashi said. "I think its best if we all go to bed now." With that everyone left the living room and headed to bed.

*****

Inuyasha and Kagome set out the next afternoon. Mrs. Higurashi made sure they had more then they need. "Are you sure you don't need anymore ramen or some more medical supplies just in case?" she asked.

"I think we're fine. Even with Inuyasha's eating habit I think we'll be good," she replied. There was more ramen in her backpack then anything else. "As for medical supplies, I don't need anymore. I practically have 2 first aid kits in my pack."

"Well you can never be to careful, dear," her mother said.

"Thank you, mom," she said as she gave her mother and hug. "I don't know when we'll be back but hopefully it won't be too long." Kagome turned around and walked with Inuyasha to the well house where they proceeded to jump down together.

*****

When they finally touched down in the Feudal Era, Inuyasha grabbed Kagome and jumped up and out of the well to the welcoming sight of Inuyasha's Forest. They stood there for a few seconds breathing in the fresh air. It had been a while since they had the chance to come back to the past and the air was so much cleaner. Kagome had to admit, she missed it. Deep down it felt good to be back in this time period. "So where should we go first?" Kagome asked.

Inuyasha took another sniff of the air before answering. "I think we should go see Kaede first," he said with a smile. Kagome didn't totally know what was up his sleeve but decided to go along with it. 

When they finally reached the village they found Kaede outside gathering some herbs. "Kagome, Inuyasha, it has been a while since I've seen ye," Kaede greeted them. "How have ye been, child?"

"I've been doing just fine," Kagome replied. "Now that I'm not jumping through time I'm actually doing well in school."

"And how about ye, Inuyasha? How are ye adjusting to Kagome's time?"

"Its different," Inuyasha said. "Though I do like the fact I can have more ramen than before."

"Ye haven't changed, Inuyasha," Kaede said.

Kagome leaned in to her. "Don't let his act fool you. He's actually getting a bit nicer," Kagome said smiling.

"That is good to hear child," Kaede said. "So what brings you back here? Just for a visit or is there something that you need."

Kagome decided to tell Kaede the story of all that was currently going on. Kaede was shocked to find that Kagome had died. She told her about Tai bringing her back to life and that he was Sesshomaru's son but just in case she left out the information about Kagura. "So ye have come back looking to reseal Inuyasha's demon blood?"

"Yes, it's really important that we do this," Kagome said. "Speaking of which I guess we shouldn't sit around here. We should get going." Kagome said as she started to stand up but to her surprise Inuyasha just stayed sitting down. "Hey, are we going to search for an answer to seal our demon blood or not?" Kagome asked looking down on Inuyasha.

"Isn't it said that if you wait the answer will come to you," Inuyasha said staring at the sky.

"I don't think we have that kind of time," Kagome told him.

"All depends on how long you have to wait," Inuyasha said.

Kagome was getting more and more angry at his casual manner. Just before she could yell at him again a villager came running up for Kaede. "Lady Kaede, a demon is approaching from the south. He has a human with him as well."

Kaede stood up. "I will have to talk to ye two later since I must attend to this matter," she told Kagome and Inuyasha.

"Don't bother. You don't have anything to worry about," Inuyasha replied. He then spoke to the villager, "Let him come. He'll probably pass through the village without causing any harm so just leave him be."

"Are you sure about this Inuyasha?" Kagome asked before Kaede could.

"No, I'm going totally insane," Inuyasha said sarcastically. "I know what I'm talking about, just trust me."

"Lady Kaede?" the villager asked making sure it was okay with the old miko. Kaede just nodded in reply. She didn't know what Inuyasha was thinking but she had trusted him before so she trusted him now.

A few minutes later, all of them could see two people making their way to where they currently were. It was tough to see who exactly it was. Though Inuyasha didn't seem to be paying much attention he was the first to call out to the new visitors. "Took you long enough to get here," he yelled to them. "I've been waiting here for at least an hour."

It didn't take much longer for the two to reach them. When Kagome was finally able to see who was coming she was a bit surprised. It was Inuyasha's parents. She then remembered how they had said that they would stop in the village.

"Well forgive me Inuyasha," Inutaisho responded. "I haven't been in this area in a while so I wanted to make sure I knew the surround area."

"Yeah well didn't you say you'd be here a month after you left. We left the castle a little more than 2 months ago?" Inuyasha asked his father.

"Well actually that's my fault," Izayoi said to her son. "I wanted to stay a little longer at some places along the way. Everything is so nice. I just love all of this country; it's so beautiful to see."

"I agree," Kagome said. "I got a chance to see a lot when we traveled around looking for jewel shards."

Kaede gave a small cough on accident but still drew attention to herself. Inutaisho was the first to greet her. "I apologize for not introducing myself earlier. I am Inutaisho, Inuyasha's father, and this is my wife, Izayoi," he said to the old lady. "You must be Kaede. Inuyasha has told us much about you."

"If it's coming from this lad," she said motioning to Inuyasha, "I'm not sure if you can trust all of it."

"Don't worry it was nothing bad," Izayoi said.

"Well I don't want to take up much of ye time. I know Inuyasha wishes to speak with ye," Kaede said.

"Why is that?" his father asked know this was serious.

Inuyasha gave his father a quick recap of his last fight. "And who is this Tai?" Inutaisho asked.

"This seems a little weird but he is Sesshomaru's son, just don't mention anything to him," Inuyasha warned his father.

"I understand. I guess my hopes do come true," he said but Inuyasha was confused. "Well if Sesshomaru's son is helping you out then that means that you two will probably bury the axe and get along."

"Yeah whatever," Inuyasha said. "At this point I don't really care about my relationship with my half-brother. What I do care about is is there a way to seal my demon blood again?"

Inutaisho frowned at this a little bit and looked to his wife who didn't look to happy either. "There isn't a way is there?" Kagome asked.

"Yes, there is," Inutaisho responded.

"Are you sure about this? Isn't there another way?" Izayoi all but begged.

"You know that there is no other way," he replied. "Izayoi, you stay here with Kagome. Teach her some more miko spells, I have a feeling she's going to need them. Inuyasha, you come with me."

Neither Kagome nor Inuyasha liked the tension surrounding them but decided to do as they were told. Izayoi took Kagome near Kaede's hut and prepared to teach her some ways to use her miko abilities to help in the fight against the yakuza. Meanwhile, Inutaisho and his son walked deep into Inuyasha's Forest. Once they were far enough away from the village Inutaisho spoke, "Inuyasha, hand me Tetsusaiga."

Inuyasha didn't feel totally safe without it but he wasn't about to disobey his father. He took the sword off his belt and tossed it to his father. "So what do I have to do?" Inuyasha asked.

"Nothing, just stay there," his father said. Inutaisho took a big breath before speaking again. "You know I made sure you demon blood was sealed when you were first born and I intended that the seal would never be broken. As we both know, it has been broken and you are having a hard time controlling you anger at times, which causes your demon blood to take over."

"Yeah, that's why I came to you," Inuyasha said.

"When your blood was first sealed, I made a promise to everyone. One that I didn't want to make," he said not even looking at Inuyasha. "The promise was that if the seal should ever be broken and you failed to control yourself, I would make sure you never transformed again." Inuyasha didn't like how this was sounding. "Once the seal has been broken, it can not be redone."

"But you said it could," Inuyasha said.

"I lied," Inutaisho said bluntly. "I must now follow through with my promise from long ago. I cannot take the chance that you will transform again and possible hurt some innocent people, especially Kagome."

"Don't tell me you're saying what I think you're saying," Inuyasha said hard to believe what he was being told.

"I will kill you before you have the chance to hurt anyone again," Inutaisho said as he charged at his son.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Another evil cliffhanger right? lol. I hope everyone at least forgives me for taking so long. In the next chapter, we will see what happens between IY and his father. We will also meet the leader of the yakuza (if only for a little bit). So join me next time for:

**Chapter 38: Sealing of Demon Blood - Part 2: No Other Way**


	40. Chapter 39 Sealing of Demon Blood Part 2

Okay well I have updated again. At least it didn't take as long to update as last time. I actually spent most of my weekend writing a program for my CSE class. I actually made it that it that you can play Hangman. The catch is that the computer is the player and guesses the letters. you just tell it how many letters and the other info need as it goes along. Just like you would in regular Hangman. I spent so much time on that, that I forgot I had a Physics midterm as well as a Math presentation. I studied as I could for Physics and I hope for the best. As for math luckily my teacher allowed me to push it back. 

Listen to me going on and on and you probably don't care. Most people probably won't even read this part. Oh well. Let's start the responses:

**_Sakume Nohara_** - In the future, Sesshomaru isn't doing much just hanging around. I haven't really given him a job or anything in the future cause that doesn't bear on the story at all. As for in the past, Sess is just wandering around with Rin as usual. He'll at least settle down later. As I mentioned he won't be seen until its time for the Sess/Kagura pairing.

_**iNULOVER **_- Inutaisho didn't want to kill Inuyasha then put a spell on him. He said he's help to seal the demon blood and lured Inuyasha out to the woods where he is now trying to kill Inuyasha.

**_Hikariko_** - I'm still not sure about a Tai/??? pairing. I don't think I'll really get into this. If he was with someone she should have been brought in by now and its a little late to introduce someone to pair with him. As for San/Mir descendants, you'll have to wait and see on that one.

Well I'm wasting enough of your time. You just want to see what's going to happen to Inuyasha. Well now you can. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I'm trying to kill IY because I can't have him. ha ha ha ha ha.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 39: Sealing of Demon Blood - Part 2: No Other Way

"Don't tell me you're saying what I think you're saying," Inuyasha said hard to believe what he was being told.

"I will kill you before you have the chance to hurt anyone again," Inutaisho said as he charged at his son.

Inuyasha couldn't believe his father's words. "_This isn't happening_," Inuyasha thought to himself. Unfortunately while he was in the middle of his thoughts, his father was getting closer and closer. Inuyasha luckily enough snapped out of his trance just as his father reached him. He then quickly dodged to one side but his arm was still cut from his father's claws. Inuyasha got a few feet away and looked at his arm in shock. It was bleeding though not too heavily. If he had waited any longer he could have been killed. "You can't be serious about this. I'm your son. You couldn't kill me, could you?" Inuyasha asked in total disbelief.

"It is because you are my son that I have to do this. Usually when a child grows up he becomes responsible for himself but that is no longer the case with you. Since you can't deal with your demon side I have no choice but to. And I don't have much of a choice but to kill you. I will not allow any innocent people to suffer from your lack of control," He told his son. "Now just prepare to die!" Once again Inutaisho charged Inuyasha. The son though stood his ground and blocked what he could. He continued to stay one step ahead of his father but just barely and his ground was slowly slipping away. Inutaisho showed even more speed and power as he caught Inuyasha off guard and just slammed him in the chest. This sent Inuyasha barreling through several trees.

Inutaisho could sense the hurt coming off of his son but he had no choice. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I don't want to do this anymore then you want me to but there is no other way. If there was I would do it."

"There is always another way. You could give me another chance to control my blood," Inuyasha seemed to try and plead with his father.

"No, you have had many chances already. You have failed each time so I must do what I have to do," he said as he once again descended upon Inuyasha. This time he caught him off guard and sent him flying off again. This time he was just out of Inutaisho sight. "Please don't make this any harder then it is already." The father slowly walked towards where he had sent his son. With a quick flash, Inutaisho saw something coming at him and tried to dodge it but was still caught in the chest. He looked down to see claw marks across his chest. He then turned to see a red-eyed, blood stained hands Inuyasha staring back at him. "So you have once again succumbed to the demon that is within you. So be it."

Inuyasha made the first move and rushed at his father. Inutaisho didn't have much time to avoid the attack. His son was much faster and stronger like this then before. As he dodged he attacked as well but to his surprise his attack missed. Inuyasha came back with his own attack. This continued in a cycle: dodge, attack, miss, repeat.

"_I can't let this go on_," Inutaisho thought. "_If anything happens, I'm putting the people around here in danger. I have to end this now._" Inutaisho started to run in the opposite direction of Inuyasha. He seemed to be running away and Inuyasha kept on his tail. He was so close that when his father turned around and made a quick lunge at him Inuyasha could do nothing to counter or dodge. Though his mind was totally irrational, Inuyasha could still feel the intense pain as he felt his father's claws rip into his midsection. These cuts were far worse than any time before. They had dug deep and much blood spilled onto the ground as Inuyasha fell.

Inuyasha slowly made his way to his feet. He mind was still totally filled with hatred and the need to spill blood but there was also the pain from his stomach. When Inuyasha finally looked up towards his opponent he got smacked right in the face but not by a fist. Some object had hit him. As if fell from his face, Inuyasha caught it. Instantly Inuyasha's mind emptied all the hatred and blood and was left with pain and confusion. As he looked down to his hands he noticed Tetsusaiga. He was totally confused as he looked up to his father, "What the hell is going on?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Now is not the time," Inutaisho said. "Draw Tetsusaiga."

Inuyasha decided to do as his father said. He drew the sword and held it out in front of him. "So now you want to fight me when I'm armed?!?"

"Just shut up and do what I say," his father ordered. "Drive the sword into the ground in front of you." Inuyasha wasn't sure if he should do it or not. His father wasn't in an attack stance but he still seemed to be tensed up. "JUST DO IT!" Inutaisho yelled at his son. 

To be careful, Inuyasha only put a small bit of the sword into the ground just in case his father decided to attack. To his surprise, Inutaisho relaxed when the sword was in the ground. Inuyasha looked at the sword as it seemed to be colored red for a bit. He noticed that the sword was absorbing his blood which had been on the ground. "Will you please explain this, father?"

"There is a way to seal your demon blood, Inuyasha, and it has just been done. I apologize for the deception," he said truthfully. "You know that Tetsusaiga can absorb powers from its foes but absorbing the blood of the foe. By angering you enough to become full demon, your demon blood started to pump through your veins. You may think that the Tetsusaiga makes you more powerful but in actuality it does not. The sword is usually no more powerful that the energy that was put in to make it. When you at first found it, it was more powerful than you because it was created from me. You grew more powerful though and eventually mastered the sword by becoming as powerful as it. By having the Tetsusaiga absorb some of your demon blood, it makes the sword just a hair more powerful than you. You will never notice the difference but it makes it that it keeps your demon blood in check whether you have it with you or not."

"So this will seal my demon blood for good?" Inuyasha asked to make sure.

"Just as long as you don't break it again, it will. When you break the sword, it loses the powers that it had gained because it takes the sword as a whole to harness that power and when it breaks it can't hold it anymore. I didn't tell you of this method because I felt that if you knew my act to kill you was a fake you wouldn't be able to revert to your demon side. I apologize for this ruse but as I said before there was no other way. This is the only way possible and I don't want to ever have to do it again. Catch my drift?"

"Yes, I understand. I won't break Tetsusaiga again," Inuyasha said. He then felt a little weary and started to sway on his feet. He used Tetsusaiga to steady himself.

Inutaisho rushed over to his side. "You're still injured from that attack. Let's get you back to the village where I'm sure your mom or maybe Kagome by now will be able to patch you up." Inuyasha unsteadily sheathed Tetsusaiga and walked back to the village with the help of his father.

"_I'd normally feel like I'm acting weak like this_," Inuyasha thought. "_But since I'm with my father it just seems okay._" He had to admit, he liked having his father around.

*****

A group of 3 people slowly approached the Sunset Shrine. They weren't in any hurry, they figured if their target wasn't there. They would wake for him. They were about to ascend the stair of the shrine but stopped when a voice called to them.

"Inuyasha and Kagome aren't here," the voice said. The three looked up to see a black haired man standing on one of the pillars. He then jumped down right in front of them. "They're not here so you might as well turn back," he said to the woman in the middle of the 3. 

The other two quickly stepped in between the man and the woman. "You have no right to talk to her. Now move out of the way before we move you."

"Don't even try me," Tai said. "I want to talk to your boss not some low level flunky like you."

The yakuza flunky was about to attack Tai but the woman's hand on his shoulder stopped him. The two men stepped aside and she and Tai looked at one another. "You are definitely very courageous to step into a fight that is not yours," she told him.

"Not necessarily," Tai said. "Though I'm surprised you actually came here. To think that Kitiara, leader of the demon yakuza, would actually make herself known to deal with a lowly hanyou. I'm quite surprised."

"We both know he is no mere hanyou but I am also surprised. Not about this Inuyasha but instead by you. You seem to know much about me yet I don't know about you," Kitiara said.

"I don't care to tell you anything about myself. You have your resources. You should already know who I am and if you don't that's your fault," Tai said almost cockily.

Kitiara looked closely at Tai as if trying to find something that would help her. It was then that she noticed it. "I know who you are now. You're the Prince of the Western Lands, Son of the current Lord, Sesshomaru. If I remember correctly your name is Tai."

"Well you do keep yourself up to date pretty good. What gave me away?" Tai asked.

"It's the small streaks of silver hair. You are the only demon I know of to have black hair with streaks of silver in it," she told him.

"Damn, the hair dye must be wearing off. I knew I should have gone with the longer lasting stuff but anyway it did its job," Tai said, which had been to help conceal his identity from Inuyasha. In truth he had about 5 streaks of silver in his hair. One on the top and then two on each side as you went down. 

"So what is it that you are doing here protecting them?" Kitiara asked.

"I have my reasons," he responded. "You won't find them not matter how much you look. They have gone on a bit of a journey and will return shortly enough. From you being here, I take it that you are looking to end this fight once and for all?"

"Yes that is true," the yakuza leader responded.

"Well how about in two weeks we meet in the rural area outside of Tokyo. That way you can fight as hard as you want and we should really have to worry about people getting hurt. In your logic, you wouldn't want to hurt your potential customers and victims."

Kitiara didn't like his smirk but she knew he had a point. "Fine, I will send further instructions. If they are not there, I will rip apart this city looking for them and kill everyone in my path. Understood?"

"Yeah, whatever," Tai said lazily. "You know you could have let this go long ago. You know as well as I that Mr. Higurashi wouldn't have said anything but no you had to go through with this and because of that you've lost many of your ranks. And now your pride won't let you back out. See you in two weeks."

One of Kitiara's guards wanted to go back and fight Tai but she forbid it and they continued to walk away. She didn't want to provoke the Prince of the Western Lands. While that was mainly just a title nowadays, he could still call upon hundreds if not thousands of demons to his aid. If it went this way, she was sure he'd continue being cocky and not bring much support for their battle. 

*****

Kagome watched in a bit of horror as Inuyasha came back with his father. She had been worried when Izayoi had told her the actual way to reseal the demon blood within her lover. Neither Kagome nor Izayoi liked the way but there wasn't any getting around it. Izayoi had reassured Kagome that Inutaisho would do as least damage as possible to Inuyasha. In the meantime, Izayoi had been teaching Kagome some miko spells, which Kagome seemed to take pretty easy to. 

As they got closer, they could see how bad the injuries actually were. "Inutaisho!" Izayoi seemed to yell. "What the hell happened? He isn't supposed to be this hurt."

"He has improved quite a lot more than I had expected. Can you heal him?" he asked his wife. Inuyasha slowly lowered himself to the ground and sat while leaning against one of the buildings.

"I could but I'm not going to," she said and shocked everyone. She then turned to Kagome who was still shocked. "You go ahead and try. I think you can do it."

"But what if I can't?" Kagome asked getting all worried.

"Don't worry, you'll do fine. If you don't I'll do it. Now go ahead and try," she said. Kagome got on her knees and leaned in to see Inuyasha's injury. She placed her hand over the wound, closed her eyes and started to concentrate as she had just been taught. It was hard seeing as how she had just learned this not even an hour ago and now she was using it on the man she loved. This only caused her to try harder. She could feel the miko energy running through her. She willed it to pass out of her hand and into the cuts. In her mind she pulled the injuries closed and when she finally opened her eyes she could still see blood. Luckily, that was only the blood from before and the wound was now gone. She looked up to Inuyasha and saw a smile on his face.

"Thanks," he told her. "That feels much better."

"Great job, Kagome," Izayoi told her. She then turned to her husband. "To heal that big of a wound can sometimes take a lot of energy. It kind of looks bad for me when she can do that kind of spell and still have much more power than I do."

Inutaisho looked a bit shocked at his wife. Obviously Kagome was even more powerful then he could have figured. "So what will we do now?" Kagome asked Inuyasha.

Inuyasha was about to say that they should head back to her time but his father spoke up first. "We would like you to say here for a while."

"Why?" Inuyasha asked.

"You are quite strong as a warrior, Inuyasha. The problem is though that you mostly jump head first into a fight. Because I was not around to give you any formal training, you learned what you could as you went along in life. I would like you to remain here for a bit and receive some training. In the meantime, I'm sure Izayoi could continue to train Kagome, right?" he asked his wife.

"I wouldn't mind. What do you say?" she asked.

Kagome and Inuyasha looked at one another for a second to decided and then Kagome spoke. "We can stay but not too long. Will about a week and a half to two weeks be okay?"

"It might be a little tough but I think we can handle it," Inutaisho said. "Let's not waste any time. Let's get started."

"I want to eat first," Inuyasha said. The others gave a laugh but agreed with Inuyasha to have lunch.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well is everyone happy now. IY isn't dead and he didn't die. I hope you liked the explanation. The next chapter might be a bit short, I don't know. I'm not going to go into the actual training or anything. Well as I said, there is about 5 chapters left until I take a break before doing the Sess/Kagura part. In the meantime, I might write a small mini-series and a one-shot just to get them out of my head. They are nothing like this story. The one shot is actually an AU as well as a song-fic. Well we'll see. Now for referral. I'm aware I referred this author before but I really like their new story:

**_It Takes Two to Tango_** by _Inuyasha Loves Kagome 4391_ storyid=1783252

Well that's about it. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 40: Preparing for the Fight** - ohh no, my story will be officially over the hill. lol.


	41. Chapter 40 Preparing for Battle

Hello everyone. I apologize for making you wait over 2 weeks for a chapter update. This story has started to enter the realm of being a chore to write. Either that or it was just this chapter was a chore. Don't worry this story will be completed. After talking with an old friend from my roots of fanfics he gave me some advice on what to do if it becomes a chore. That means I might revive my old lemon story. I don't really like writing lemons but TJOW, the story, took me 3 years to write, was over 150 pages, and was only halfway done the 1st saga. There was suppose to be 3. I don't like leaving projects unfinished so I might go back and work on that some more. Of course, because of its content it won't be found on fanfiction.net. If there are people out there that want to know where they can find it, just email me and I'll let you know. Well enough of that. Time for reviews:

**_ brlousee_** - You know you said you stopped at an evil cliffhanger but you missed the last chapter which wasn't a cliffy. Also you're the only one to actually mention the thing about the poison claws. Kudos to you.

**_Chelsi_** - Yes it is true that Tai lived through some of the Feudal times. As for how he would know about Kag/IY's future, well so far he has known what is going to happen in the future so it wouldn't be too hard from him to know what happens in their future. The true reason behind this will be revealed later on.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Good to hear from you again. I must say though you shouldn't harass innocent bystanders. A friend of mine goes to Drexel college. While walking about town he usually gets stopped by some religious people giving him all these speeches and that. So rather than harass them back, he has his own fun by just talking to them but he tells him things that contradict what they believe and sometimes leaves them questioning their beliefs. 

**_darkinuyasha_** - The whole thing was that the only way to seal IY's demon blood was the get him to turn full demon when his demon blood would start flowing through his veins. Then spill some of that blood and cover the Tetsusaiga's blade with it. The sword has and added ability that when it absorbs the blood of a foe it will gain the power of that foe. This is how the demon blood is sealed.

**_FukashiOni_** - We really won't see a future Sess. We will see a feudal Sess again. As for Kanna, I said she got defeated in the battle with Naraku. Check out chapter 1.

**_hikariko_** - You know you're the only one to pick up on the fact that Kirara and Kitiara's names are similar. Even I forgot about that. They don't have anything in common. Sorry to ruin it for you but I didn't even see the similarity (though I think Kitiara will be a cat demon).

Well that's all the reviews for now. I must say I did cut this chapter slightly short. I was going to do one more scene at the end but I decided that I could end it where it was and it would be just fine. There will be 2 new Original characters in the next chapter. I need names though. I slightly have an idea for the one but I will accept ideas. Requirements: 1 male name and 1 female name. Both must be Japanese names. Only need the first name. I'm keeping with Japanese to keep with the style of the story. Well on with the chapter

Disclaimer: While I have every episode of IY subbed and both movies I still don't own IY himself. Though I do own Tai and you can't have him.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 40: Preparing for Battle  


True to their word, Inutaisho and Izayoi trained Inuyasha and Kagome for the entire two weeks. Where Inuyasha's training was hard physically, Kagome's training was mentally draining. At the end of each day, Inuyasha found himself with more and more bruises or wounds. Most would heal by the next day, if they hadn't then either Kagome or Izayoi would heal him. By the end of the two weeks, Inuyasha had gained a much greater skill in using the Tetsusaiga then before. His father even forced him to think ahead in his fights. Most of the time, Inuyasha preferred to just rely on his fighting instincts but that didn't work against his father. By the end of the training, Inuyasha had gotten into a rythym of planning ahead while also using his instincts. This made him a very tough opponent even for his father.

Kagome had also made a dramatic leap in using her miko powers. She found it quite easy to learn some of the spells. She thought it might be because of her being Kikyo's reincarnation but Izayoi more thought of her as a natural. She was also able to learn more uses because of the depth of her power. Izayoi had told her that if not for her overwhelming amount of power than Kagome would have probably used up her power halfway through the day. Kagome didn't just learn healing powers. She also learned some defensive spells such as shields and barriers and even a few offensive powers. 

When the training came to an end, everyone was sad that they had to go. "I'm sorry we can't stay any longer but we must be going," Kagome said.

"I must say, I'm even sorry to be going," Inuyasha admitted.

"Promise me you'll come back and let us know how the fight went, okay?" Izayoi asked.

"We will, mom," Inuyasha said giving her a hug. 

"I'd tell you be careful but seeing as how your going to be fighting, I know you wouldn't listen," she said. 

Inuyasha then walked over to his father. "Thank you for everything. I owe you."

"You don't owe me anything. If I had been there to raise you properly you would have gotten this training. I was just making up for lost time. Besides I still owe you for being here. Just do me one favor, okay?" Inutaisho asked his son. Inuyasha nodded in agreement. "Win the battle."

Inuyasha was about to give a cocky reply but saw the seriousness on his father's face and he knew this wasn't the time for foolish optimism. "I will. You can count of that," he replied seriously. "As long as our injuries aren't too bad, we'll return here within a day of the fight. Will you wait for us?"

"Yes, we will," the father replied. "Good luck."

"Thank you once again," Inuyasha said and then turned to Kagome. "Ready to go?" Kagome had just finished her goodbyes and nodded to him. Inuyasha then bent down and allowed Kagome to get on his back. Even though the well wasn't far, he felt like giving her a ride. It had been a bit since he had and he knew she liked it. "See ya," he said as he ran off with Kagome. He could feel Kagome holding on to him tight though it wasn't out of fear. Though he couldn't see it he knew she was smiling at that point. When they were almost to the well, Inuyasha said back to her, "Were almost there. Be sure to hold on tight."

Kagome didn't totally like the way he told her. "Why? What are you going to do?" she asked but got no response. She could see however the edges of a smirk so she took his advice and held on tighter. No sooner had she done that then Inuyasha leapt off the ground with a huge amount of force. Kagome closed her eyes for fear they would hit some of the tree branches above them. She noticed that she felt no branches and not even any leaves. When she opened her eyes, she could easily see all around. She could even see Inutaisho and Izayoi waving at them. She and Inuyasha were very high in the sky and that's when it hit her. They had come up this far, that also meant that they would being going down as well and it was a long way down. "I'm going to kill you for this, Inuyasha," she all but yelled as they quickly descended. As she looked though she saw that Inuyasha had no intention of hitting the ground just yet. He had timed his jump exactly that they would descend right into the well. She wanted to yell at him some more but had no time as they quickly descended right into the well.

*****

As soon as touched down in Kagome's time, Inuyasha leapt up and out of the well. "Thank god I'm back on the ground," Kagome said as soon as Inuyasha had set her down. "I should say the word, just for scaring me back there."

"Don't deny it, you liked it," Inuyasha told her with a smirk as they walked out of the well house and to Kagome's home.

"Yes, I liked when you ran through the woods. I liked getting a great view of the surrounding country side but I didn't like plummeting to the ground at a high speed," Kagome said back to them.

"To just about anything good there's always a catch," Inuyasha told her.

"Yeah, I know," Kagome said and then thought to herself. "_Just like its good to spend time with you while the catch is that I have to put up with you being a jerk at times._" Kagome then entered the house, "Mama, I'm home," she yelled.

"It's about time," a voice called out from the living room. Inuyasha and Kagome recognized the voice but it didn't belong to anyone in her family.

They both walked into living area to be greeted by none other than Tai Azuma. "What are you doing here?" Inuyasha growled at him.

"Jeez, you know who I am so calm down. So how is Grandfather?" Tai asked.

It took Inuyasha a second to realize he meant Inutaisho. "He's doing fine but you still didn't answer my question."

"I came here to see you two. While you were gone, the yakuza decided to stop by for a visit," He said. Kagome looked a little surprised and worried but Tai calmed her. "Don't worry, they were here for a fight but since you weren't around I got them to leave. You missed the leader though."

"The leader of the yakuza was here?" Kagome asked in shock.

"What did he want?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well SHE wanted to end this fight once and for all. She's tired of her men losing to you," Tai told him.

"So the leader of the yakuza is a woman?" Inuyasha asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, her name is Kitiara. She's the most powerful demon in the entire yakuza and the most cunning. She is far worse than Naraku was," Tai stated. "I was able to keep her from tearing this shrine apart by agreeing to a battle outside of Tokyo tomorrow just after noon."

"And why did you just go and make this appointment. How did you know we would be back by now?" Inuyasha asked.

"You forget," Tai said and then put on a mock evil voice, "I know everything." Then even topped it off with a small evil laugh.

"You're crazy," Inuyasha declared. "You know, you may tell me that you're the son of Sesshomaru and Kagura but you sure as hell don't act like it. Sesshomaru is as cold as ever, doesn't show emotion, and acts nothing like you. That is unless he's changed in the last 500 years though I can't see that happening."

"No, he hasn't changed much since before. I'm different though. I have my own reason for acting the way I do," he said. "Now as I said, the battle is tomorrow, be sure get some rest. You're going to need it."

"So it's just going to be us against like 500 of them," Kagome asked getting worried again.

"As it now, yes," Tai answered truthfully. "I've reached out a bit of help but I can't be sure."

"Who?" Inuyasha asked.

"Don't worry about that. Just get some rest. We'll worry about the fight tomorrow," Tai said. "I'll come here early in the morning. See you then." Tai then exited out the front door.

Seconds later the door opened again. "What do you want now?" Inuyasha asked not even looking.

He instantly regretted it when he saw who it was. "Now Inuyasha is that anyway to welcome people home?" Mrs. Higurashi said as she and the rest of the family came into the house. "We just got back from going out to eat. I'm sorry I didn't know you two were coming home tonight or we would have waited for you."

"That's okay," Kagome said. "Just to let you know Inuyasha and I have to go somewhere tomorrow, okay?" She didn't want to tell her mother the truth and have her worrying. Kagome was worried enough. She hoped all the training she had received would help.

"That's fine, dear," her mother said. Kagome was happy that she didn't ask where they were going because she didn't really want to have to lie to her own mother. Kagome then turned around to talk to Inuyasha but saw Souta pulling him away to play some video games. Kagome just smiled at let him go. She wasn't totally sure how the battle would go tomorrow so she would let her brother have fun with his hero while he could.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well as I said before. I was going to add one more scene but I decided to end it there. The scene will be in the next chapter. Once again sorry for the long wait. So its question time again:

**If you read the notes at the beginning you know what this is about. I'm looking for 2 names for the next chapter for 2 new original characters:  
1 Male Name, 1 Female Name. Both must be Japanese names and only a first name. I have an idea for one of them but I'm still open to suggestions.**

Well with that said. Be sure to join me next time for:

  
**Chapter 41: The Battle - Part 1: Knowing Friend from Foe  
**


	42. Chapter 41 The Battle Part 1

Well everyone, I updated sooner than last time. That's good. Just to let you know. In 2 weeks I have finals so things will get hectic around then. Also the week immediately after I finish finals I'll being going back to work. I don't know how things will go when that comes around but we'll see. As it stands now there will be about 5 more chapters before I take my break and then come back to do the Sess/Kagura pairing and tie up everything in the story. 

**_Questionable_** - 8 hours, now that takes some dedication and I admire you for that. I've only known one other person crazy enough to do that if not more. Do you know who that person is? .........ME! Yep, I've done it before. Fun isn't it?

**_chinita_** - Thanks for the suggestions, even though I'm not using any right now I will keep the Izarou in mind. The fact that it starts off similar to Izayoi, Inuyasha's mother, leaves for an interesting idea.

**_Ryngrl15_** - Well thank you so much for your one entry for the names. I always tell people who buy a bunch of lottery tickets, 'You only need one to win.' Well it seems that the one you entered made it. I've decided to use Kyo for the guy. Probably because I've watched Samurai Deeper Kyo and I liked that show. lol.

**_DestroyerDRT_** - You've hit the nail on the head just don't tell anyone else.

**_brlousee _** - that is quite interesting. I didn't know what Tai Azuma translated to. No one has gotten this yet but Tai was named after his grandfather, Inutaisho. Tai is just a short version of the name. As for Azuma, that comes from Phantom of Inferno, which is a cool DVD game I've played (if you want to know what its like you could check out the OVA Phantom the Animation). Thanks for the heads up though.

Well I want to thank all those of you who suggested names. I've decided to go with my original idea for a female name, which was Rika, while I went with Ryngrl15's single suggestion for a male name, Kyo. I will keep in mind all the names in case I need them again. Also the first scene here is one that was supposed to be in the last chapter but I forgot it. Sorry. Also I gave Tai a nickname. Those of you who know Japanese, please tell me if I said it right.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY but I do own Tai and have now gotten ahold of Rika, Kyo, and Hiko.

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 41: The Battle - Part 1: Knowing Friend from Foe  


Sango was just returning from guard duty when she saw one of her fellow slayers rushing towards her. "What is it?" Sango asked.

"Midoriko wishes to speak with you. She says it is rather important," the slayer said.

"Thank you," Sango said as she rushed off. When Sango arrived at her house, she found Midoriko in the living room. It also seemed that Miroku was there as well. "Is something wrong?"

"Now that both of you are here I can begin," Midoriko said. "I have not told you this but for the past few months since Kagome reached her time, she and Inuyasha have been fighting against a new enemy."

"Are they okay?" Sango asked worried for her friends.

"At this moment they are fine. I do not know how bad this enemy is but it was bad enough for Inuyasha to seek out his father so as to reseal his demon blood. Inuyasha and Kagome were here in this time for the last two weeks training with Inuyasha's parents."

"They were here?" Miroku asked in disbelief. "Why didn't you tell us before?"

"I didn't realize how bad of a threat this was and I also didn't want to you go see them because you would have interrupted their training," Midoriko replied.

"Is there anything we can do to help them?" Sango asked. "I know we're on this side of the well but I don't want them to fight this alone."

"At this moment, they are not alone. They have an ally in the future but I do see that your help would be appreciated. So I guess it is time to give out the rest of my gifts."

"What do you mean?" Miroku said.

"You do remember that I gave Inuyasha a gift which was in fact knowledge of the future," Midoriko said. Both Sango and Miroku nodded in understanding. "Well he isn't the only one with a gift but I didn't think it was time for yours." Midoriko then reached down to her waist and removed her sword. She held it out until it glowed for a few seconds. She then turned to Sango, "Sango, I want you to give this to Kagome. I feel that she will need it in her upcoming battle."

"I would love to do that but I can not cross over to Kagome's time. Only Inuyasha and Kagome ever had that ability."

"Give me your hand," she said to Sango and repeat the same for Miroku. She then put their two hands together, which caused Sango and Miroku to blush slightly. She then put her hands around theirs and once again started chanting to herself. Soon Miroku and Sango found themselves giving off a small pink aura. When Midoriko let go it stopped. "You two will now be able to cross over but this is only one time. You can go to the future and come back but not constantly back and forth like Inuyasha and Kagome. If you choose to spend some extra time in the future after the battle that will be fine but don't stay too long and once you come back you will not be able to go back. Do you understand?"

"Yes, thank you," Sango said as she and Miroku started to get up.

"Miroku, there is one final gift for you but it is optional."

"And that would be?" Miroku asked.

"I can give you access to your wind tunnel but only for a limited amount of time," she told him. Miroku was surprised by this. "I can give it to you that it will last for about 1 day. It will take you half a day just to reach Kagome's time. The only thing is that the same risks apply as before. If you keep it open too long or it opens wide enough you can get sucked it. That is why I'm giving you the choice."

"I think it would be best for me to take you up on the offer. I believe it will be needed in this battle," Miroku said as he took the rosary beads from around his neck and placed them over his hand like before. Midoriko then placed her hands around Miroku and chanted like before. Soon Miroku could almost feel a hole being torn in his hand. It felt just like it had when his wind tunnel had grown in the past but this time the feeling was multiplied. 

"You can leave as soon as you are ready. I have placed the same spell on Kirara that you have so she can take you to the well and cross over with you. I have also spoken with your parents, Sango. So they know that you will be going."

"Thank you," Sango said.

Miroku on the other hand looked at Midoriko with a weird look on his face. "Is there something the matter?" she asked him.

"You know I remember you mentioning you had very little of your power left. Yet you did all this. I don't think you're as weak as you let on," Miroku said not mad about it just stating the facts.

"You are as perceptive as ever. It is true I am not totally weak but when I told Kagome she had surpassed me I was not kidding. Her power as it is now is much stronger than I was in the past. Now if I were you, I'd be going. Your friends are going to need your help."

"I agree. Thank you very much," Miroku said. "Shall we go, Sango?" 

"Yes," Sango said as they rushed out to help their friends as soon as they could.

*****

Inuyasha and Kagome woke up early. They wanted to be fully awake before they left to fight. The fight was at 12:30 and it was 11:30 now. It wouldn't even take 30 minutes to get to the battlegrounds. "You ready?" Tai asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"As ready as we're going to be," Kagome said. "And who gave you permission to just barge into my house without even knocking?"

Tai didn't reply he just smirked back. "So what about our reinforcements?" Inuyasha asked.

"I don't know for sure. Like I said they might get here they might not. I wasn't going to force anyone into this battle."

Inuyasha then realized something about Tai's appearance. "Since when did you have silver streaks through your hair?" Inuyasha asked.

"Ohh, I've had that since I was born. I just dyed it black before I started teaching. I didn't need you to know who I as too early. I guess the rest of the dye came out when I showered." Tai then turned to Inuyasha with a total serious face and lacking emotion. Inuyasha shivered slightly and was certain that Tai was Sesshomaru's son. "Listen Inuyasha, I can tell that you still don't trust me. No matter what I've done to help you, you still doubt all my actions. Well I'll give you this warning you had better learn to trust me really quick. When we are out there fighting today we are going to have our hands full and you don't need to be extra burdened by keeping an eye on me to make sure I don't try something. I give you my word that you can trust me."

"Feh, whatever," Inuyasha said. "Just do me a favor. Don't look at me like that again, it reminds me of Sesshomaru. Speaking of which, will he be joining us for this fight?"

"I'm sorry to say but he will not," Tai responded.

"He busy or something?" Inuyasha asked.

"Not as far as I know. He just declined to take part in this battle. He said it was our battle to fight and he had no place in it."

"Sounds like he's being a coward," Inuyasha said getting angry once again at his half-brother.

"You are welcome to think what you want," Tai said not wanting to provoke him any further. "_The actual reason is that he doesn't want you to start thinking any better of him. If you return to the past you must feel the same about him then as you did before. My helping you has probably started to sway your belief of him but this should offset it enough_," Tai thought.

With that nothing else to say, the three of them walked towards the front door. Tai was the first to exit since he was closest to the door. Before he took one step out the door, he motioned to Kagome and Inuyasha to wait. Inuyasha didn't like the idea but decided to trust his nephew. After Tai had taken two steps out the door, his hand shot up and caught a small dagger right before it could hit him in the face. Inuyasha immediately pushed Kagome behind him so as to protect her. In the meantime, Tai's other hand shot up to caught yet another dagger but this one was headed for his chest. Tai then quickly placed the two blades between his fingers of one hand as if they were throwing knives. Using his other hand, he sent of gust of wind through a tree where the daggers and come from. Inuyasha and Kagome could her someone lose their balance and start to slip within the tree. Just as the person lost their balance Tai threw both daggers. Kagome and Inuyasha watched as the culprit fell from the tree and watched as the daggers got closer and closer. They could tell how bad the assailant had been hit so they walked over with Tai towards the attacker.

"You know you're going to get hurt if you play with knives," Tai said in a mock warning tone of voice. Kagome and Inuyasha were surprised by his voice and looked at the attacker. It was a girl that looked to be no older than Kagome. They also noticed that the dagger's had missed her body completely though it had caught her clothing and she was stuck to the tree.

"Well that someone should have been you. Just a little cut would have done," she spoke back. "Ohh well. Get me down from here!"

"Why would we do that?" Inuyasha said.

"Calm down, Inuyasha. She's on our side," Tai told him.

"What?! What do you mean she's on our side? She just tried to kill you," Inuyasha said.

"Actually no she didn't. She tried to see if she could wound me. Neither of them have been able to yet," Tai replied.

"Neither of them? What are you talking about?" Inuyasha said getting angry since he was getting confused.

Tai then turned back to the girl. "Yes, where is your partner? You two don't go far without each other," Tai asked.

"He didn't feel like coming," she said.

"Yeah right," Tai said as he quickly turned around while raising Toukijin from his belt. He brought it up just in time to deflect about 3 deadly ninja stars from hitting him. He then proceeded to pick up one of them and fired them at the point of origin. Tai didn't hit is attack but he wasn't aiming at him. Using the star, he was able to cut the branch the person was standing on in a tree that had been directly behind him. All four watched as the branch and then a boy, about the same age as Kagome, fell out of the tree.

"Damn, I was so close," the boy said.

"Yeah sure you were. Now get over here," Tai said as he turned around and freed the girl from the tree.

"Why couldn't you pin me to the tree as well?" the boy asked as he rubbed his sore butt.

"Because you can take the fall much better than she can," Tai said. "I would like you two to meet Inuyasha and Kagome. Inuyasha, Kagome, this is Rika and Kyo." Kagome gladly shook their hands while Inuyasha just looked on.

"So how are 2 humans going to help us?" Inuyasha asked.

The two seemed to take a bit of offense to it but Tai quickly jumped in. "Though you may not notice it, Rika is one of the descendants of Rin and Kohaku. She is also one of the few from that family line to take a liking to fighting. That's probably because she has been best friends with Kyo since they were born. Kyo is a descendant of Miroku and Sango and they are both qualified demon slayers."

Kagome and Inuyasha were surprised to hear that. So the demon hunters still existed in this time. "So what was with attacking us?" Inuyasha asked.

"I wasn't attacking you, just Uncle Tai," Rika said with a smile. "He usually boasts that he's better than us so I'm usually trying to catch him off guard. Besides that, he called me 2 days ago and warned me about this. I was in America at the time visiting Hiko. I don't get to see him that much and it was really cool staying at his place." Rika said as she glared at her uncle.

"Hiko? Who's he?" Inuyasha asked.

"Nobody," Tai answered quickly.

"So how's the Kaze no Inu doing?" Rika asked teasingly.

"Will you quit calling me that?" Tai yelled.

Rika and Kyo laughed at Tai's anger. Even Inuyasha and Kagome found it a little funny. "Where did you get the nickname Dog of the Wind [or Wind Dog, whichever you feel like]?" Kagome asked.

Tai just sighed. "My mother gave it to me when I was young. When I was still young I liked being called it but now its more of an annoyance."

"Ohh, I think it's cute," Rika said and then added, "Kaze no Inu."

"If you don't stop that you won't make it to the fight," Tai threatened. "Speaking of the fight, we'd better get going or else we'll be late."

*****

Tai, Inuyasha, Kagome, Rika, and Kyo stood in the large field that was in the rural area outside of Tokyo. They looked on at the people before them. Tai hadn't been joking when he said they would be fighting 500 demons. There was a huge crowd of them about 300 yards away.

"Well this is going to be fun," Inuyasha said. "I take it this Kitiara is the one on the hill." Inuyasha motioned towards the hill behind the demon army.

"Yes," Tai said. "The only thing is that you'll have to get through this army to get to her."

"Well there's 500 of them and 5 of us. I guess that leaves us with about 100 each," Inuyasha stated.

"I don't know about you but I don't think I can fight 100 demons by myself," Kagome said.

"Don't worry, as we fight through them you won't notice how many you kill. Not to mention, Inuyasha and I will probably end up killing more than 100," Tai said.

"So when does this fight begin?" Kyo asked. Nobody really knew the answer but they started to see movement from the demon yakuza army. The army was charging as they spoke.

"Okay, dumb question," Rika said as everyone got into a battle stance.

Inuyasha looked around at his allies for this battle. Kagome had a bow she had received from Kaede as well as arrows. Tai had Toukijin out and was ready to use it. Rika had her two daggers and from the looks of it she had two extras just in case. He then looked to Kyo who had a bunch of ninja stars. "Please tell me those aren't you only weapons?" Inuyasha asked Kyo.

"No," Kyo almost gave a laugh. "I'd be a sitting duck in close quarters combat with just these. I've also got a kitana and I'm quite proficient with it."

"Good. Now," Inuyasha said as he withdrew Tetsusaiga. "Let's get this fight started! KAZE NO KIZU!" The Windscar tore threw the ground towards one of the army's flanks. Another flank was being torn apart by the energy from Toukijin. 

Only two attacks and the yakuza had already lost more than 100 of its men. The battle of the century had finally begun.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well to all of you who know Japanese, tell me does Kaze no Inu translate to Dog of the Wind aka Wind Dog. This was a guess but I felt like taking it. I liked how it sounded. To everyone, let me know what you think of the name. Well here's some trivia:

**In the next chapter or two, 3 groups of 2 people each will be showing up. Who do you think it is? (One of the groups is obvious)**

Well now that, that is said I don't have much else to say. Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 42: The Battle - Part 2: Reinforcements Arrive** (Very Tentative title. I'm not too happy with this one right now)


	43. Chapter 42 The Battle Part 2

Sorry once again to take a long time. This week is final exams for me so after this I'm free of school. Unfortunately that doesn't give me a reprieve. On monday, I start work again over the summer but at least this time I won't have school work to compete with. The only downside is I have to get up at like 5-6 in the morning and won't get home until 5:30 at night. But don't worry this story will more along. 

Also while guessing a few people mentioned Hiko or asked about him. Yes, I tossed that in there for a reason but he really won't make much of an appearance in the story. He only be mentioned again in like the final chapters if not just the epilogue. As for the groups everyone got to obvious, Sango and Miroku as for the others. Most people were on the right track though I said Sess and Kagura wouldn't fight and I meant it. Now on with the chapter.

Disclaimer: I only have 2 dollars at this point, do you honestly think I can afford Inuyasha or any of the others?

A Wish From the Heart  


Chapter 42: The Battle – Part 2: Reinforcements Arrive  


Inuyasha withdrew Tetsusaiga. "Let's get this fight started! KAZE NO KIZU!" The Windscar tore threw the ground towards one of the army's flanks. Another flank was being torn apart by the energy from Toukijin. 

Only two attacks and the yakuza had already lost more than 100 of its men. The battle of the century had finally begun.

"These guys won't be that tough," Inuyasha said already getting a little fully of himself.

"Don't underestimate them, we must be careful," Tai warned him.

"Feh, whatever," Inuyasha said as he swung the Tetsusaiga once again releasing the Windscar upon the yakuza. "This will be over before you know it," Inuyasha said without even watching his attack.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled at him as she watched the battle before her. Inuyasha turned around and noticed that hardly any more demons were killed.

"What the hell?" Inuyasha asked in surprise. "I guess you just want some more." 

Before Inuyasha could swing his sword again, Tai stopped him. "Inuyasha, get a hold of yourself. If you were paying attention you'd notice that the more powerful demons are taking the front and blocking our attacks."

"Then I guess it's time to get down and dirty," Inuyasha said as he cracked his knuckles.

"Inuyasha, don't worry about these. We'll take care of them, you go and take care of Kitiara," Tai told him.

"Fine, but first I'll have to clear a path," Inuyasha said as he charged ahead right through the yakuza.

"You ready?" Tai asked the group behind him. Though they hadn't done anything in the battle yet, Kagome, Rika, and Kyo were ready to fight and help. "Then let's go!" Tai said as he charged their enemy right behind Inuyasha.

Kagome in the meantime fired off an arrow she had been waiting. She wasted no time in notching another one and firing it off. Rika did the same but she set her timing so that while Kagome was getting another arrow, she would fire one off and vice versa. Rika felt a little small though with Kagome there. While Rika was lucky if she could take out 3 demons with one arrow, Kagome was able to take out almost 10 demons sometimes with her miko enchanted arrows. Kyo on the other hand was using his kitana to take out any demons that would get close to them.

Tai on the other hand wasn't holding back with them. He was charging through the hordes of demons in front of him. He had trained his whole life for this fight and he was sure as hell going to put that training to good use. He was doing his best take out the easy ones first. While individually the weaker ones didn't pose a threat, as a group they could keep him distracted if he tried to fight one of the more powerful ones. 

Inuyasha had done well and was almost to the hill that Kitiara stood upon. It hadn't been hard for him to get through the demons. He had gone where he saw the weakest point in their line and just plowed through the lesser demons. While he was running at the moment towards the hill with no opposition, he could see a couple of demons waiting for him at the base of the hill to block him from getting to Kitiara. When he finally got to the base, Inuyasha stopped and looked at the two demons in front of him blocking his path. "So tell me, are you going to let me through or do I have to kill you first?"

"We are the bodyguards of the yakuza leader," both of them said at the same time. "We have protected our leader with our life for far too long now to just let you pass. If you can not defeat us, you are not even worthy to be on the same battleground as our leader."

"Fine by me, two more bodies isn't going to make much of a difference," Inuyasha said. 

*****

Tai couldn't see any of his allies. Inuyasha was too far ahead of them and he couldn't see Kagome of the others because of being blocked by hundreds of youkai. He was a little worried for them. He knew they were all well trained for this, that was except for Kagome who just got some recent training. He knew they could handle some demons but the sheer number could overwhelm them. Tai kept those thoughts in the back of his mind while worried most about the opponents around him. He continued to cut away at them but for every one he took out 3 more took its place. He had been training to fight this impossible fight but part of his ego had convinced him that the fight wouldn't be as hard as he thought it was. His ego was proven totally wrong. This fight was much harder than he expected and he knew he hadn't seen anything yet. Luckily he hadn't stopped his training. He hoped that the other reinforcements would arrive soon to help.

*****

Inuyasha looked on at his opponents. The two bodyguards were putting up more of a fight then he had expected. Together to duo was probably much worse than Naraku but he wasn't that afraid. He had defeated Naraku and he had also come a long way in his skills since that battle almost half a year ago. The two landed on the ground together about 25 feet in front of him. 

"Now you will die!" they both yelled as they combined their powers and fired a single deadly, huge fireball at him.

"_I was waiting for something like this_," Inuyasha thought to himself. Rather than try to dodge the blast, he did the exact opposite and jumped right towards it surprising his opponents. "BAKURYUUHA!!" The pair of demons could only look on in shock as their own energy was turned back against then. They tried to dodge but it did nothing as they felt themselves torn apart by the torrent of energy from Inuyasha's attack. "Now that, that's done," Inuyasha said as he quickly made his way up to the top of the hill on which Kitiara stood. 

"So you have finally gotten here," Kitiara stated. "It's nice to meet you face-to-face after so long."

"Same here, it's good to meet the bitch that's been a pain in my ass for the past months," Inuyasha replied.

"Cocky as always. I've seen both of your techniques, the Kaze no Kizu and the Bakuryuuha. They won't stand a chance against me," she said confidently.

"You only saw them because I felt like being generous. I didn't have to use my Bakuryuuha on your pitiful bodyguards but as I said I was being generous," Inuyasha said.

"It didn't matter if you would have shown them or not. They are exactly as I expected of you. You see, I've done my homework before this fight. Your legend precedes you. I know all your attacks. Your Sankon Tessou [aka Iron Reaver Soul Stealer], you Blades of Blood [sorry don't know Japanese equivalent off the top of my head plus I like this name], as well as your two sword's techniques. Tell me what do you know of me?" she said with a large grin.

"I do know that you hide in the shadows like a coward, using your minions to do you dirty work. You're just like Naraku and you'll meet the same fate as he did," Inuyasha said still fully calm. "_I'm glad she likes to talk. Gives me time to heal not to mention she doesn't know as much as she thinks she does. She doesn't know about my final technique that I used against Naraku. She'll find out about it soon enough though_," Inuyasha thought as he inwardly grinned.

"Before we start our fight I want you to see just how futile your efforts are. Come here," she said as she motioned for him to come closer as she watched the battle below. Inuyasha walked over. He could see the battle raging below. It seemed that everyone was broken up by now. "The simplest strategy always seems to work, doesn't it? Divide and conquer. Now that all of your friends have been separated, my yakuza will make easy work of them," Kitiara said with a small laugh.

Inuyasha watched on in horror. He wasn't really worried about Rika, Kyo, or even Tai. His attention was on Kagome. She was surrounded by demons. Her bow lie beside her in two pieces, obviously broken by one of the demons. At the time, Kagome was keeping the demons off of her by erecting a barrier around herself. Every now and then, she would push the barrier out throwing the demons off of her shield while at the same time trying to put enough power into it to kill some of them. Inuyasha wanted to rush down at that second and just rip each and every demon there to pieces but he had his own fight in front of him. He was torn between ending this fight once and for all or to go down and help the one he loved. Just then he got a smell of the air and just smiled. "I wouldn't be throwing a celebration party just yet if I were you, the fight is far from over."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

*****

Kagome just continued to keep her shield up. She didn't know what to do now that her bow was broken. She hadn't taken that into account when going into this battle. She hoped that Tai or someone would come and lend her a hand. Kagome could feel the demons pounding on her barrier. One of the more powerful ones let loose a hard hitting attack on the barrier. Kagome gave another jolt of energy to keep the barrier up and knocked some away but the hit had cause her to lose her breath and while trying to regain it her barrier fell. She could only look up as the demons which she had kept at about a 10 feet radius from her started to come at her. She couldn't do anything as they started to rush at her. She watched as a ring of fire surrounded her. The fire was so intense. She tried to shield herself from the flames but after a few seconds she realized it was of no use. She noticed that the fire wasn't harming her at all. In fact it was acting as a protective barrier. She slowly rose to her feet. She could see the demons trying to get at her and failing. Then a few of them tried jumping over the wall of flames. The flames rose to stop them and it did stop about half of them. The others that did get over it found themselves shot out of the sky by what seemed to be lightning strikes. Kagome didn't totally know what was going on. All of a sudden two demons jumped over the wall of flames without any resistance. She watched as they landed next to her.

"You never could stay out of trouble, could you Kagome?" a masculine voice asked her. Kagome couldn't exactly place the voice. It had a small bit of familiarity to it but what really got her was the person itself. It took her a bit to realize it.

"Shippo?!" she said more as a statement of shock.

"Yeah, it's been a while hasn't it?" he said. To him it had been hundreds of years since he had seen Kagome so he had changed quite a bit. He now looked to be a young adult.

Kagome then looked to the person with Shippo. It was a young female demon that looked to be about the same age as Shippo. She looked quite beautiful with long black hair which was held back by two pony-tails. Kagome just looked at her. She didn't know quite who the girl was.

"I'm sorry for not introducing myself," the girl said. "I'm Shippo's mate, Souten."

Kagome knew that she had heard that name before. "Do you mean Souten, as in sister to the Thunder Brothers?" Kagome asked as she remembered her run in with the little girl from long ago.

"Yeah that's me," she said politely. "I thought this would be a dead giveaway." She held up the Thunder pike which Hiten had used to try and kill Inuyasha with. "I found it when my brother passed away. It had to be repaired and because of that it's not as powerful as before but it works just fine."

"Speaking of using weapons, I think we should get back to the fight," Shippo said as his wall of flames slowly dissipated. Since Kagome still had no weapon all she could do was watch her foster son and his mate fight in front of her. She was glad that Shippo had found such a wonderful person to be with. Kagome still remember how she had liked Souten from the moment she met her even though the little girl had tried to hurt them. 

Kagome was thinking too much about Shippo and Souten that she didn't notice the demons coming at her from behind. Shippo and Souten were too worried with protecting her from other directions to notice as well. The demon was just about to sink it's teeth into Kagome from behind when it was kicked in the face sending it far away and out of the battle if not dead. Kagome felt the strong draft of air from behind her and quickly turned around right into the arms of Kouga, though a little older and more modern looking. He was there with a muscle shirt and denim jeans which she found quite surprising. "So how's my woman doing? You shouldn't be taking part in such a dangerous battle," Kouga told her.

"Thank you for saving me but I'm not…." Kagome was going to tell him that she wasn't his woman but never got the chance to as he was slammed face first into the ground.

Before Kagome could turn and protect Kouga from whatever demon had attacked him, the demon proceeded to stomp on his back while yelling at him, "I thought I told you no more of that! Don't you ever listen!" the red headed demon yelled at him.

Kouga pushed the foot of his back and jump out of the ground, "Ayame, I was just kidding. I was just saying it for old time sakes. I renounced my claim on Kagome a long time ago, you know that." 

"Yeah, well still don't do it again," Ayame said to him one last time. Kagome had to smile at this. It reminded her of how she and Inuyasha got along including how Ayame had hit Kouga into the ground, which was like when she 'sat' Inuyasha.

"Well I hope you don't mind," Kouga said to Kagome, "but we thought we should join in on the fun as well."

Before Kagome could respond another voice called out, "Got room for two more?" she looked up and there descending was Sango and Miroku. Kagome couldn't believe it, no more than 10 minutes ago, she was on her own hoping someone would come and help. And now she had more than enough help.

*****

Inuyasha looked on at Kitiara. "See what I told you, their fight is far from over," Inuyasha said. "And I think it's time our's began." With that Inuyasha withdrew Tetsusaiga from it's sheath, which he had put away during his talk with the yakuza leader.

"Yes, I think its time I get rid of you once and for all," Kitiara said as she took a fighting stance.

*****

"The fight is going quite well," a mysterious person said as he overlooked the battle from a distance.

"Yes but it is far from over," a female voice said as she stood next to her companion. "It would be so much fun if we could go out and join them."

"You know as well as I that it is forbidden," the man said.

"Yes, you shouldn't even be here," a third voice said surprising the other two.

"What are you doing here?" the woman asked.

"It seems the same as you, just enjoy the fight," he said. "I should have brought some popcorn though."

"I find it ironic that you told us not to come here yet you are here and that poses even more of a threat then we do," the first man said.

"Yeah, I know but I knew you wouldn't listen and I knew I wouldn't listen to my own words," the other man replied.

"Then why even say it?" the woman asked. The man just shrugged. The woman just sighed at him. "You don't make any sense you know that." The second man didn't reply, he only smiled at her which got her more annoyed.

**_~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&~&_**

Well that's it for this chapter. I decided to end it there with a few mystery characters. But I do have one final thing to ask everyone:

**If everyone remembers, way back in Chapter 1, Inuyasha used a new attack to defeat Naraku. It is still open for the attack to be named. English or Japanese names are accepted, though Japanese is encouraged. I hope you guys can come up with some cause if I do it will be pretty lame.**

Well thanks to everyone for waiting patiently for this chapter to come. Here's 2 referrals since I haven't given for any while:

**_The Ad_** by _sailor-scribe storyid=1805186 - _Very entertaining fic.

**_A Couple of Blocks Away_** by _iLOVEcheese_ storyid=1817285 - Very good story which deserves a lot more reviews than it has.

Well that's about it for this chapter. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 43: The Battle - Part 3: Finale**


	44. Chapter 43 The Battle Part 3

I am once again sorry for taking forever to update. This was a tough chapter to write for me because I'm not very good at battles so I took my time to make it better. Not to mention, work has been a pain in my ass. The main problem with my writing is that my best writing atmosphere is at night but since I have to get up for work at 5:30 am I can't stay up late anymore. I'd like to say more but I have to rush this so I can get to sleep.

Thank you all for your attack name suggestions. I have chosen 2 actually. One attack is given to IY's attack while the other you'll see at the end of this chapter. You'll have to find out next chapter what the second name is though.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY.

**A Wish From the Heart**

******Chapter 43: The Battle – Part 3: Finale**

****

****"Got room for two more?" Kagome looked up and there descending was Sango and Miroku. Kagome couldn't believe it, no more than 10 minutes ago, she was on her own hoping someone would come and help. And now she had more than enough help.

"Sure the more the merrier," Kagome said. "I could really use your help. I broke my bow. You wouldn't happen to have an extra would you?" Kagome asked her friends.

"I believe we could help you with that," Sango said as her and Miroku landed. "This is a gift from Midoriko. It's her sword. She wanted us to give it to you."

"That was really nice of her. I'll have to thank her then," Kagome said.

"Well how about we worry about our fight," Kouga yelled. He, Shippo, and Souten had been holding off the demons around them.

"Sorry," Kagome said. She quickly took the sword from Sango eager to rejoin the fight with her friends helping her. Unfortunately for her, it wasn't time for her yet. As soon as she fully took the sword out of Sango's hands, everything around her went black.

#####

The three mysterious spectators watched the fight before them. It was great to watch without having to take part in the battle. While it was good to watch the fight, one of them didn't totally care about watching every little thing. Finally the woman spoke up, "So tell us Mr. Know-It-All, how is this fight going to turn out? We know part of it but fill us in with the rest?"

"Now that wouldn't be any fun, now would it? I love to see how people are usually surprised, so I'll wait to see what you think?" the laid back man said with a grin.

"You are trying my patience," the other man said. "You had Tai memorize all the events but you wouldn't let him know how this turns out. Tell me!"

"Just wait and see," the other said as he turned his attention back to the fight. The two others weren't happy with him but they also turned and continued watching the fight.

#####

Tai was getting tired at his opponents. If he didn't do something soon he might get overwhelmed. He knew that reinforcements had arrived but doubted they would be able to help him in time. As it was now, they were protecting Kagome. They probably couldn't even see him among the whole army of demons. His fight wasn't helped by the fact that two demons he was fighting were as strong as Naraku.

"That's it. I've had enough of this," Tai said as he quickly put his sword away. The demons he was fighting look at him with victory in their eyes.

"I'm glad to see you are resigning yourself to your fate," one of the two strong demons said.

"Who said I was giving up?" Tai literally growled out. He raised his head and they saw the red in his eyes seem to leak out and color his entire eye while the iris itself changed to gold. That wasn't the only part of him changing. The demons soon found themselves looking at a giant sliver demon dog with some black fur mixed in. Tai didn't waste any time as he swung his huge paws taking out what demons he could. The two powerful youkai looked at him with intense anger.

"You'll pay for that!" one said as they both quickly launched themselves at the giant dog.

Tai just smiled before opening his mouth. He then let out a giant roar. The demons just continued on their way but soon found themselves caught off guard. From the roar they found themselves start to be thrown back by huge gusts of wind. They never hit the ground though, at least alive that is. Not only did Tai let loose a torrent of wind from his mouth but also thousands of poisonous blades of wind. The attack also cut up or poisoned demons that were within the area. The yakuza now found themselves fighting a more powerful, aggressive, and lethal Tai.

#####

Kagome looked at everything around her it was all black. "_Did I pass out?_" Kagome thought. "_Or maybe I got attacked from behind and now I'm dead_. _Either way, where am I?_"

"You're within your own mind," a voice said. "No, you didn't pass out and you didn't die. I brought you here." It took Kagome a bit but she then recognized the voice. It belonged to Midoriko.

"Is that you, Midoriko?" Kagome called out.

"In a way, yes. Though I'm not here in the flesh," the voice said as Midoriko appeared in front of her. "Listen I can't answer all of your questions, as a matter of fact, I practically can't answer any. You see this isn't really me here. Its more like a recorded message for you. It probably seemed like I already answered one of your questions but in fact I could tell you were going to ask that so I included that at the beginning. The sword you received from Sango and Miroku belonged to me. It was made long ago. It will allow you to channel your miko powers through it. I know you don't really know how to use a sword but that is why I'm here. I'm doing this to give you a small overview of what you'll need to get along."

"But what about the fight outside?" Kagome said forgetting she was talking to a message.

"I'm sure right about now if not maybe later, you'll wonder about the main fight. Don't worry about it. This message is taking place directly in your mind. Our brains our much faster than any computer you have. It can process tons of information in a matter of time. That is why though it seems we've been in here 5 or 10 minutes, in actuality, not even a second has taken place outside of your body."

"Really," Kagome stated. "That's cool."

"Yes, you may like it but we don't have the most amount of time. There is still a battle going on and everyone second counts," Midoriko warned her.

"Yes, your right. I apologize," Kagome said.

"Don't worry about it. Right now we have to worry about you getting to use your sword. Now I doubt you're totally unfamiliar with a sword since you've been traveling with Inuyasha for almost 3 years," Midoriko pointed out. "I'm going to train you for a little bit on how to channel your power through the sword. After we're finished you'll be able to go back and join the fight. By that time only about a few seconds will have passed."

#####

"The fight is going well," the mystery silent man said.

"Yes it is, and I'm quite proud of how Tai is doing," the woman said.

"You would," said the more outspoken man. The woman just stuck her tongue out at him.

"What I am not happy with is his attitude. He becomes carefree and reckless at times," the silent man said.

"I wonder whose fault that is?" the other man said not daring to look at his fellow spectators.

For the next while there was total silence between them. As a matter of fact, the next noise wasn't from any of them. It came from a group of demons below them. It seems they were trying to sneak behind Kagome and the others. The group of spectators just watched from above them in the trees. The woman looked to her companions and seemed to beg without speaking. Mr. Know-It-All just waved his hand.

In a matter of seconds, the demons blow them were in pieces. Death from above, they never saw it coming. "I told you that you were not to take any part in this battle," the man said.

"You know I couldn't help it," she replied. "Besides I don't think we made that much of a difference."

"What you did isn't going to make much of a difference, but the three of us being here is going to be a big influence."

"I don't understand what you're talking about it," she said. The man didn't say anything, he only grinned.

#####

Kagome opened her eyes and found herself back on the battlefield surrounded by her friends. "You okay, Kagome?" Sango asked.

"Yeah," Kagome responded as she came out of her trance.

"That's good you zoned out for a few seconds," Miroku said. "Well we better help them out before they start yelling at us." Miroku said referring to Shippo, Kouga, and the others.

"Yes, I think I've sat out far enough," Kagome said as she raised the sword and it glowed blue. Miroku raised his staff while Sango took Hiraikotsu off of her back. They reached the front lines of the battle and didn't hold back. Sango let her boomerang fly. It took out 10 demons before flying back and taking out an additional 10. Miroku used his staff to take out what demons he could. He also used his paper scrolls when he got the chance.

Kagome was also doing quite well. For having practically no experience with a sword she used it quite well. Cutting through the demons wasn't hard at all. The miko power she was channeling through the blade made it much simpler for her. Even if she missed her opponent, the mere energy surround the blade was enough to hurt the demon if not kill him. She was getting so caught up in her battle she didn't see the two yakuza members coming up from behind her until it was too late. She noticed them but she knew she wouldn't be able to swing her blade at them in time. She then felt herself swing the sword with ability far beyond her own. The two demons were cut in half but Kagome was more worried about what had happened. She just looked at the sword before she felt it. She could feel Midoriko's energy. And this energy wasn't something left over like the message had been. Kagome understood. Midoriko was still linked with them and she was helping Kagome in this fight. This made Kagome even more energetic in her battle.

#####

Inuyasha waited for Kitiara to make the first move. One thing his father had pounded into him turning the training was patience or at least a bit of it. Inuyasha took in his opponent. She was a cat youkai and most likely quite power. She had to be if she commanded an entire demon army. She was quite slender and from Inuyasha could gather she would probably be rather quick on her feet. She knew far more about him than he did about her. He would have to be very careful.

Kitiara got tired of waiting and ran quickly at Inuyasha. Her sudden attack caught him off guard and with her speed he could barely moved before he claws swiped at him. She managed to cut him along his chest. The wounds weren't fatal but did bleed a good bit. If he hadn't been prepared he would have been dead by now. "Not bad," Kitiara said. "Most people are dead from my first attack."

"Well I'm not most people. You'll find it a lot harder to kill me," Inuyasha bragged.

"It may be harder but trust me I will kill you," Kitiara said.

"Well I live to disappoint," Inuyasha said. It seemed Kitiara liked to talk probably because she barely was ever need to get involved in a fight. This worked to Inuyasha's advantage because it gave his body time to heal.

"Enough chit chat. Time to end this," Kitiara charged at him and swung her claws. This time Inuyasha was ready and dodged it but he still felt pain. He looked at her and noticed her claws were just about on fire. She had missed him with the attack but the heat had been hot enough to cause some damage. "Don't like my fire claws. Maybe you need to get more acquainted with them."

Inuyasha waited for Kitiara charged him again. This time just before her claws could reach Inuyasha he swung the Tetsusaiga upwards. He cut her lower stomach and was also able to cut her face slightly before she moved out of the way. "It seems you are underestimating me," Inuyasha said.

"It seems I am. I must say I did not expect you to be able to swing such a large object as fast as you did," Kitiara told him. "I will not make that same mistake twice."

"No, but I'm sure by the end of this battle you'll make some different mistakes," Inuyasha grinned. Kitiara was growing tired of his arrogance. She flexed her claws and then charged at him again. Inuyasha kept an eye of her claws waiting for the moment she would use them to attack. Unfortunately for him, she had other things in mind. She brought her leg up and kicked him in the shoulder which started to spin him around. She then followed with her other foot kicking him in the back. As soon as her leg connected, Inuyasha could feel cold over his entire back. She then swiped over his back with her fire claws which because of the freezing cold only intensified the pain and damage.

Inuyasha stumbled away from Kitiara while putting a hand to his back as if it would help. "_Damnit, not only does her claws give off fire but her feet freeze what it hits. That doesn't make a good combo, at least for me_," Inuyasha thought to himself. Kitiara was certainly living up the his expectations, even though he wish she hadn't. "KAZE NO KIZU!" Inuyasha shouted as he swung his sword at Kitiara letting loose the Windscar.

Kitiara acted quickly by raising her hand. When she did so a wall of earth came up and protected her from the attack. As soon as the attack passed, the barricade of rock crumbled. "I told you I knew of your attacks and they don't stand a chance."

Inuyasha wanted to come back with a quick witted reply but he wasn't in the mood. Barely anything he did was working and that was seriously angering him. This fight wasn't too well in his favor.

#####

Kagome continued to slice thru opponents as they came at her. Thanks to Midoriko's help she was probably the biggest threat on the battlefield at that moment. Unlike the others attacks which some of the yakuza could withstand, her sword was like poison to them. They continued to surround her but in far bigger numbers this time. They knew that if they all attacked at once most of them would die but at least they would bring her down. Kagome on the other hand wasn't ready to die yet. In her mind, she knew what she needed to do. As they stormed at her, she simple swung the sword in a circle not hitting anyone. Instead it seemed to create a ring of light, which at its completion grew outwards and destroyed whatever it came in contact with. It continued out for 50 feet before finally dissipating. Luckily for Kagome that wiped out most of the demons around her.

"_This sword is the best. I'll really have to thank Midoriko when I get back to the Fuedal Era_," Kagome thought.

"You're welcome," Midoriko said in her head.

"_You can read my mind and talk to me_," Kagome thought.

"Just barely. It is because you are reaching out for my help in this fight that I am able to make this connection. Please let us not talk again. It drains me too much," Midoriko told her.

"_I won't. Thank you_," Kagome thought to Midoriko before going back to the battle.

#####

Tai, still in his demon form continued to attack at anyone that came near. Unfortunately he was starting to weaken. He decided it best to go back to his human form. A bunch of demons jumped at him but only caught air as the dog disappeared and Tai reappeared in his usual form. That was the problem with be only three quarter demon. He was not able to stay in his demon form indefinitely. It also ate up a lot of his energy. While the fight had gone well so far for him, he feared it would not be so for the rest of the battle.

#####

Shippo and Souten weren't faring much better. A lot of Shippo's attacks where still only illusions which after a while the demons had caught on to his trickery. He did still have other attacks but they weren't nearly as useful.

Souten's attacks were powerful but she was running out of energy. She and Shippo had managed to take out about 4 of the more powerful demons but that was taking its toll on both of them. She didn't know how much longer they would be able to hold out. She only hoped that the others were doing better than she was.

#####

As much as the others wished, Kouga and Ayame's situation was the same as theirs. They had taken out a few of the powerful demons but found themselves tiring out. Not only from the fact of the fight but they had to travel a far distance just to get to the battlefield. That hadn't taken much out of them at the time but they were starting to feel it now. The youkai army was getting smarter. When they noticed that speed was Kouga and Ayame's advantage, the faster of the yakuza came to fight them. Because of that their advantage was lost and against certain enemies they were outmatched in speed. It was not turning out well.

#####

While Sango wasn't in the best situation either, with her Hiraikotsu being cracked, Miroku did most of the fighting and backing her up when needed. If they couldn't, Kyo and Rika was there to help. Kyo had long since run out of his stars. So he was left using his katana. Rika was getting low on her arrows.

Miroku could see a giant grouped headed towards Sango. She had been using half of her boomerang as well as the blade hidden in her sleeve to fight opponents. He knew that she wouldn't be able to handle the force headed at her even with Kirara's help. Miroku quickly ran in front of her. He quickly took the rosary beads off of his hand and held it up at the onslaught of demons. The youkai were taken by surprise as they were sucked into his wind tunnel. As soon as most of them were in Miroku closed it. He had felt the pain from the black hole in his hand.

"Are you okay, Miroku?" Sango asked worriedly.

"I'll be fine," Miroku lied and Sango knew it.

"Don't use that hand again. I can tell that it's growing bigger," Sango commanded while the concern was evident in her voice. "Remember Midoriko said you'd have temporary use of it but you could still get sucked in. We didn't go through all that trouble to defeat Naraku to get rid of that just to have you sucked in later."

"I won't," Miroku assured her. He knew that without his Kazaana, they didn't have much of a chance. He only prayed that they would be able to hold out.

#####

"They aren't doing so well," the cold man stated. "About the only one I see doing well is Kagome."

"Yeah even the jackass on the hill isn't doing that good," the woman pointed out as she mentioned Inuyasha's fight with Kitiara.

The other man just got a little angry but not enough to blow up. "Just give them time, everything will work out in the end."

"You sure we can't fight," the woman asked almost pleading. "I hate being this close to a fight and being told I can't take part."

"I told you we can't make anymore of an influence on this fight then we already have," the man said. Then he whispered under his breath, "well no more than that and the one we are about to make."

"I heard that," said man said formally.

#####

Inuyasha looked on at his opponent. Kitiara had the ability to control the four main parts of nature: fire, water, ice, and earth. He didn't know if she could control the wind or lightning or anything else but at this point he didn't want to know. She had even managed to block his Bakuryuuha using a torrent of water. She had the whirlwinds of energy pick up the water and she proceeded to turn the water to ice. The whirlwinds of energy then just turned to big columns of ice before crumbling to the ground. Inuyasha had managed to injure her a little more but he was still far more injured than her.

"Tell me to you wish to quit just yet?" Kitiara asked as she approached Inuyasha who was on his knees breathing deeply. "If you do I will make your death quick and painless."

"I will never submit to you," he growled at her.

"Fine but you should know something I've decided," Kitiara said. "You are no longer a threat to me anymore. You are far too weak to present a challenge. The one that does is your little girlfriend, Kagome. With that sword of hers, she is destroying my army. I think I will kill her before I kill you. Just so you can watch her die." With that Kitiara started to walk away. She wasn't afraid to have her back turned to him. He practically had no power left.

"_I can't let her kill Kagome. I guess its now or never_," Inuyasha thought as he tried to pull all the friendly energy around the battlefield to him. It wasn't taking long. There was an overwhelming amount being given off. He could even feel some that didn't belong there.

Kitiara could also feel the energy around Inuyasha grow. She didn't know what was causing it but she didn't like it. "I don't know what you're doing but you won't live long enough to try it."

"That's what you think," Inuyasha said as he raised from the ground swinging his sword at the same time "Kaimetsu-teki Na Nami!!" [Thanks to Selcryn who gave me the name devastating wave, though I like to think of it as Devastation wave. If it would be pronounced differently let me know I will change it.]

First a wave of invisible energy was let loose from Tetsusaiga. All the yakuza on the battlefield found themselves paralyzed. Next a single huge line of energy just seemed to make its way across the battlefield when it reached the middle it left off a huge explosion that engulfed the entire battlefield and everyone there friend or foe.

& I could end it here and be just plain mean but since you waited so long I won't &

When the smoke cleared from the field, the only people left stand were Kagome, Inuyasha and Tai. While the others had been knocked to the ground but were without injury from the blast. After Inuyasha saw that his friends were okay, he fell to one knee. He was hurt more than he'd admit but he would live.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled as she rushed up to make sure he was okay.

"Don't worry, I'll live," he assured her.

"Don't be so sure of that," a dark voice said. Inuyasha turned to see a bunch of shadows come together to form Kitiara again. She was injured but still alive. "If that attack would have been centered on me it might have killed me but since it was a spread out attack I was able to survive. Now I'll make sure you don't."

Inuyasha reached for his sword will Kagome held hers tight. As soon as Inuyasha touched Tetsusaiga, both it and Kagome's sword seemed to pulse. They looked at each other almost knowing what had to be done. Inuyasha swung his sword leaving off a horizontal wave of energy. Kagome did the same but in a vertical manner. The two waves of energy combined and into a cross before totally obliterating Kitiara once and for all.

_&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&_

This is the end of the chapter. I know you probably have some questions. Ask them though I already plan to answer a lot next chapter. If you ask one that I forgot about I may answer it next chapter. I will answer why IY's attack was different and how everyone survived it. See you next time for:

Chapter 44: Sorting Things Out  


PS - Special Thanks to QuickEdit for screwing up my chapter!!!!  



	45. Chapter 44 Sorting Things Out

Well it took me two weeks but I have another long chapter( 7 pages). Work is really demanding so that's why I'm going a little slow. I will continue to update. I will not leave this story unfinished. Thanks to the added Sess/Kagura part it will add at least 10 more chapters I think. The only thing I'm a little sad about is the amount of reviews is going down. I hope I haven't lost too many people.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY. Never have but hope to in the future.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 44: Sorting Things Out

Inuyasha's Kaimetsuha **[I know I altered the name but according to Tsukinoko it basically means the same thing and I agree that it sounds slightly better that way.]** had successfully killed off all of the yakuza army with the exception of Kitiara who had been finished off by a combined effort from Inuyasha and Kagome. The only things left now was to sort everything out amongst the allies.

#####

[by the way the # doesn't mean anything different then the stars from before. Its just that ff.net deletes them so I'm now using #]

"Well that was an interesting way to end a fight," the mysterious stern spectator said.

"I loved it," the other man said with a huge grin.

"Since when was that attack an area attack? I thought that it did damage to one person only. Not to an entire battlefield," the woman asked.

"I'll explain that later."

#####

As soon as Inuyasha had finished the attack and was sure that Kitiara was dead his legs gave out on him. He didn't need any sit command this time as he fell face first in to the ground in front of him.

"INUYASHA!" Everyone yelled and ran up to him. Kagome looked over the extent of his injuries. He had major gashes on his chest and back. Around those injures seemed to be very bad burns. His legs and arms had cuts going up and down them. It looked as if he had lost quite a bit of blood in battle. If he had been human, Inuyasha would have died. Even as a hanyou Inuyasha was barely conscious. Kagome quickly used her powers to start healing him. She had used a lot of her power during the battle but luckily Midoriko and Izayoi had been right she had plenty of miko power. She was grateful for this because she needed it when healing Inuyasha. It took her several minutes but he was looking better as time went on. Inuyasha could feel his aches disappearing and when his mind settled he realized Kagome was healing him. He also could sense that it was really draining her power. Once all of his major injuries were healed he stopped her. "That's good enough," Inuyasha said to her.

"You still have a lot of injuries left," she said as she tried to continue healing him.

"They're only scratches left. I don't need to carry you home cause you passed out from healing me to much," he told her. He could tell that she wasn't about to stop so he actually reasoned a way out of it. "Worry about the others. I'll be fine for now."

When Inuyasha said that it made Kagome realize she had totally forgotten about everyone else. One of them could have been dying and she was just thinking about Inuyasha. She quickly turned to see all of her friends their with only a few injuries but nothing severally life threatening. Tai seemed to be the worst though even he wasn't as bad as Inuyasha. All his injuries were probably from the fact that he like Inuyasha had just charged ahead without anyone else there to help him out. He had a big diagonal gash on his back. He had two horizontal cuts along his torso and his legs were badly cut up as well. Most of the leg cuts he received he had gotten while in his demon form.

Kagome quickly made her way around healing everyone. Within a few minutes everyone was back to normal except for Kagome who felt just a bit weak. "So does anyone want to start explaining everything?"

"Well how about we get out of here first?" Tai asked. "We can all go back to the Shrine and then talk about it."

"That sounds good," Kagome said as she almost fell asleep.

"I'll meet you there," Tai said as he watched all of them take off. Sango, Miroku, and Rika atop Kirara, Souten had learned to fly like her brother and gave Kyo a ride, while Kagome was on Inuyasha's back. Kouga, Ayame, and Shippo were left to run to Kagome's house. As soon as they were gone Tai took off towards the edge of the forest. As soon as he got there he looked up into the trees. "Are you going to come down now or do you want to continue to spy from up there?"

"I don't know. Should we?" the one man said with a smile.

"It is fun to annoy him sometimes," the woman said but they soon jumped down in front of him.

"Happy now?" came the usual stern voice.

"What are you guys doing here?" he asked almost mad at them.

"Don't take that tone of voice we me young man!" the woman yelled. "Besides I see more than just guys here."

"You know what I mean," Tai replied.

"Who ever taught you how to disrespect your elders," the one man asked.

"Oh, I don't know. It could have been the man who trained me for quite a bit," Tai asked.

"Are you saying I did?" the man stated though he knew the answer.

"I told you it was a bad idea," the woman said to the detached man.

"Yes, I knew it was," the man said in monotone, "but I was in his debt."

"Well you better get going and see you uncle or else they'll start to wonder what happened to you," said the other man. Tai didn't move though. He just looked at the man with a grin. It took him a little bit to understand why Tai wasn't leaving. He just growled before rephrasing his statement. "Get going to the shrine now."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going," Tai said.

Just as he turned around to go he heard the monotone voice call out to him. "Tai," he said and waited for Tai to face him. "Don't forget about dinner at your grandfather's this Sunday."

"Thanks, I almost forgot," Tai said. "Hiko's coming from the US, isn't he?"

"Yeah, we finally got him to get out of Pennsylvania and come back home," the man replied with a small laugh. **[sorry but the author has to advertise his home state, which he loves. J ]**

"He likes the forests there you know that," Tai said. "Who would have expected it, a dog liking to be around trees?" Tai and the woman laughed while the two men just glared at him a bit.

"You know you just made fun or yourself?" the man said in monotone.

Tai didn't care. He didn't mind if a joke was made at his expense as long as he could laugh at it. "Well I have to get going. See you later."

#####

Inuyasha and Kagome were the first to arrive but by then Kagome was asleep on Inuyasha's back. While trying to get her off, he woke her up. Everyone else got there about the same time except for Tai. He showed up a minute later. "Where were you?" Inuyasha asked.

"I just had some clean up to do," Tai replied. "Where's Shippo and Souten?"

"Well Souten dropped off Kyo and they had to go. They didn't say why but they took off," Inuyasha said.

"I see," Tai said. "So what exactly are we sorting out?"

"I want to know how did that huge attack?" Kagome asked Inuyasha. "How is that attack the same as when we fought Naraku?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha said. "I did it the same way. Maybe it had to do with the fact that there was more energy put into the attack this time."

"Actually, I know the answer," Tai said. "You guys would figure this out if I gave you enough time but I'd rather save time and just tell you now."

"Well quit blabbering about stupid things and just tell us," Inuyasha said.

"Think about it. When you fought Naraku, how many people were you fighting?" Tai asked though it was obvious.

"One," Inuyasha said.

"Yes and this time we were fighting hundreds. I hope you can see the obvious," Tai said. "The attack varies on the amount of enemies. When you fought Naraku, the attack didn't spread out like it did this time because it sensed there was only one enemy."

"It can sense the number of enemies?" Kagome asked a little skeptically.

"The energy of the attack goes after all the evil energy on the battlefield. With Naraku, there was only one evil energy source where as in this battle there were many. Now as you saw with Kitiara, the attack can only do as much damage as the energy going into it."

"I guess it's a good thing that we had added help," Inuyasha said.

"Yes, I made sure to get whoever I could," Tai said but Inuyasha just looked at him with and knowing glare.

"You hear that. You needed our help," Kouga called out.

"Well your help I think we could have done without," Inuyasha said getting Kouga a little angry. "Now Ayame was helpful but I don't know about you." Kouga was tempted to hit him but over the years he had learned to take jokes. "Now that I think about it what are you doing here?"

"Tai called and said he needed help in this upcoming battle so we came. What's wrong with that?" Kouga asked.

"Well last time I checked you and his family, specifically Kagura, didn't get along?" Inuyasha said.

"Kagura?!" Sango questioned while she and Miroku shared the same surprised expression on their faces.

"Yeah, we forgot to tell you. Tai here is the son of Sesshomaru and Kagura," Kagome said filling them in.

"That's surprising," Miroku said.

"Anyway!" Inuyasha said. "Care to explain why you two are acting all friendly?" Inuyasha asked looking at Kouga and Tai.

"I guess I'll explain," Kouga said. "Do you remember when we first met?"

It took Inuyasha a second to think back that far. "Yeah, I remember. You and your wolves were tearing apart that village."

"Yes," Kouga said a little somberly. "I'm not particularly proud of that. Anyway one of the people that was killed when my wolves attack was a small girl. That girl was then later revived by Sesshomaru. Rin was that girl."

"That's how Rin met up with Sesshomaru?" Kagome stated a little surprised.

"Yes, well so as to not say too much that was remembered later on and Kagura treated Rin as her own daughter. Because of the fact that both my pack was revived and Rin was revived that little fight ended without too much hassle."

"Beside's Inuyasha those two are the most stubborn people I know. So your saying that just like that, they made peace?" Kagome asked.

"It wasn't exactly that easy," Tai said with a stutter. "It took a bit of convincing. My father helped out as well."

"That isn't good," Inuyasha said.

Before any more could be said, the door to Kagome's house opened. "Kagome!" her mother yelled as she ran over with the rest of her family not far behind. "We were so worried about you. We didn't know how you were doing."

"It's good to see that you're doing good as well, boy," Mr. Higurashi said to Inuyasha. "I should have known you could take care of yourself."

"I knew you'd win," Souta said. "That's why you're my hero."

"Yeah, whatever," Inuyasha said.

"So who are all these people, Kagome?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

"This is Sango, Miroku, Kouga, Ayame, Rika, Kyo, and I think you know Tai," Kagome said. "Everyone this is my mom, dad, my grandfather, and my little brother, Souta."

Everyone exchanged hello for a little bit. "We'll leave you out here with you friends, Kagome. We're going to start dinner soon so if your friends want to join us they are welcome," Mr. Higurashi said.

Sango and Miroku agreed while the others declined the offer. "Well I think its time we get going," Kouga said.

"Yes, we have a far way to get home. It has been nice to see you again," Ayame said. With that Kouga and Ayame took off.

There was something bothering Sango that she finally decided to ask. "I can understand why everyone else is here but can you tell me why you're here? Not that I'm not grateful," Sango asked Rika and Kyo.

"That's cause he's you're descendants," Rika said without thinking. Kyo and Tai glared at her.

"What?" Sango asked shocked.

"Don't get too flustered," Kyo said. "What she means is that I'm a descendant of the Demon Exterminators."

"They still exist?" Sango asked.

"Yes, the town of exterminators still exists but many have gone off from the town and live in other parts of the world. It was not a well liked idea at first but we are able to cover more area this way," Kyo said.

"It's great to know that our way of life still lives on in the future," Sango said.

"Yes, and we have Inuyasha to thank for that. If he had not made the wish on the Shikon Jewel, the town would have just been another memory," Rika said.

"So how do you fit into this?" Miroku asked.

"I'm technically not one of the exterminators but I've been hanging around with Kyo since I was young that I got a good bit of training myself," Rika said with a smile. "Wanna fight me to see?"

"No thanks," Miroku said with a smile. "If I want a fight all I have to do is," Miroku's hand grabbed onto Sango's rear and she instantly swung for his head. Miroku was expecting this and jumped back. "See what I mean," He said quickly as he ran away from Sango as she continued to try and hit him.

"I've always heard stories but its nothing like seeing it in person," Kyo said with a smile.

"What do you mean you've heard stories?" Kagome wondered.

"Those two are the most famous couple of all the demon slayers," Rika said.

"I can understand why," Inuyasha said. Inuyasha looked around and noticed someone missing, "Where's Tai?"

"I don't know he was here before," Kagome said.

"He wouldn't have left without saying good bye," Rika added. Just then Tai walked out of the Higurashi house.

"What were you doing in there?" Inuyasha asked.

"Don't you trust me yet?" Tai asked but from the look on Inuyasha's face he already knew the answer. "If you must know, I went to get a drink of water. Now if you'll excuse me I must be going. I was asked to tell you that dinner is ready."

"That's good," Kagome said. "Inuyasha, could you go get Sango and Miroku?"

"Yeah sure," Inuyasha said as he walked off.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" Kagome asked Rika and Kyo.

"No thanks. We must be going as well," Rika said. "Have fun." Rika and Kyo gave Kagome before leaving.

#####

The entire Higurashi family was gathered around the table as well as Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku for supper. They all ate while chatting a bit more. "So you're Sango and Miroku?" Mrs. Higurashi stated more than questioned. "Kagome has told me so much about you. It's so nice to meet you finally."

"The feeling is mutual," they both said.

"So how did you get through the well?" Inuyasha asked. "And how did you know where we were?"

"Midoriko gave us the ability for when she wanted us to deliver her sword to Kagome," Sango said. "As for your location, we could easily feel an overwhelm evil demon energy."

"Oh my god, I lost the sword. I forget where I put it," Kagome said getting worried.

"Calm down," Inuyasha assured her. "I put it away with Tetsusaiga. You totally forgot about it when you fell asleep."

"Speaking of the sword," Miroku said. "What was with that combined attack you two did? You guys must have really been training to do that."

"Actually, our training had nothing to do with that. I could feel what Tetsusaiga wanted me to do so I did it," Inuyasha admitted and Kagome agreed.

"So what are you going to call it?" Sango asked.

Kagome was about to say something when Inuyasha spoke, "Kyuusei Batsu" **[ aka Sudden Death Strike. Thanks to Array for this.]**

"Don't I get any say in this?" Kagome just about yelled at him.

"Ow, ow, ow," Inuyasha said as he rubbed his sensitive ears. "Fine, what do you want to call it?"

"I think "Kyuusei Batsu" is a good name," Kagome said.

"Then why the hell did you yell at me?" Inuyasha asked.

"I wanted you to admit that I had a say in the naming of it," Kagome said. Inuyasha just gave his usual 'Feh' response which Kagome just ignored. She just turned back to Sango and Miroku. "This is so cool, so you'll be able to go back and forth with us."

"Actually we can't," Miroku said and which Kagome got a bit disappointed. "Once we go back to the feudal era, we can't come back here. This is a one time chance."

"So how long before you have to go back?" Kagome asked worriedly.

"Well she never told us how long before we had to go back, so we can go back whenever we want," Sango said.

"That's good cause I want to show you around," Kagome said with a smile.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well that's it for this chapter. I do have a question for my audience though:

**I've been thinking about doing another karaoke incident. What do you guys and girls think? Probably won't be with Sango and Miroku. Just IY and Kagome. Let me know**

Thanks to all the people for reading and for those who review. Please review and join me next time for:

**Chapter 45: Touring Tokyo**


	46. Chapter 45 Touring Tokyo

Okay quick responses since it is 1:30 and I have work tomorrow. Everyone seemed to like Karaoke so I'm doing it again. I chose the songs and I don't think anyone had suggested the ones I used. I already had them in mind before asking.

**_fire feline_** - Your the only one to mention the PA thing in your review. Yes I'm PA proud. I even go to Penn State. :)

**_Newfire/B.C. Girl_** - I thank you for all your praise. "Best Guy Author" I can't totally fight with you on that cause I don't know what other guys are out there writing these stories. If you know of any let me know. Thanks again.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - That had to be cool to meet the voice actors for IY. I haven't even gone to one anime convention yet. I live a sheltered life, do I not?

**_brlousee_** - At this point, Kagome's sword will not have a name. I might just leave it as Midoriko's sword or something, we'll see. As for Hiko, that won't get mentioned until the end. Sorry.

**OTHER NOTES: **We're done seeing the mystery people for now. You'll have to wait until way later to find out about them if you haven't already figured them out. There was one thing everyone missed, at least I think you did. Look back at the last chapter and keep an eye on Tai. That's all the clues you get. That's another thing that will be left hanging until the end but I just wanted to clue you in. On with the story.

I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 45: Touring Tokyo

Inuyasha slowly snuck into Kagome's room. He had left Miroku asleep and Sango was asleep in a sleeping bag on Kagome's floor. He could see Kagome was also sleeping as well on her bed but that didn't stop him. He first made his way to the window and made sure it was open. He then moved quickly to her bedside and picked her up slowly as to not wake her. He walked over to the window and lightly jumped out to the roof and then to the God Tree.

Sango slowly opened her eyes and just smiled as she knew that Inuyasha had taken Kagome. She awoke right when Inuyasha had entered the room but had kept quiet as to see what he would do. "It seems they have gotten over themselves and got closer since we last saw them," Miroku said from Kagome's still open doorway.

Sango was a bit surprise since she hadn't heard the monk's approach but didn't let it show. "That seems correct. I think a lot has happened to them lately to bring them closer. I only hope for the best for them."

"I want that for both them and us," Miroku said. He then looked at Sango seriously. "When should we tell them?"

"I think we'll tell them when they tell us," Sango said with a smile.

"That could be a while with them being so stubborn," Miroku said. He then looked outside. "We should go back to sleep. The sun isn't even up yet and we don't want them to know we're watching them. Goodnight." Miroku quickly leaned in and gave Sango a quick kiss on the lips.

"Goodnight," Sango said with a small blush.

#####

Kagome slowly opened her eyes as she could almost feel the light trying to force its way in. Kagome also felt a little bit cold yet warm at the same time. As her eyes adjusted, she noticed that she was no longer sleeping in her nice comfy bed. She had been sleeping in Inuyasha's lap, which she had to admit felt right. She also saw that she was atop the God Tree.

Before she could complain, Inuyasha spoke, "It's been a while since we had a chance to just sit together like this. As a matter of fact, the last time we were together like this, we watched the sun set and I told you that I love you."

"So this time it's different. We're watching the sun rise in my time," Kagome said. "Though we did get a chance to sit down and watch that movie.

"I remember but your mom came in and ruined it. No one's going to ruin this moment," Inuyasha said as he gave her a passionate kiss. "I'll always love you."

"And I'll love you forever as well," Kagome said when she caught her breath. "It must be really nice to come up here often." Inuyasha just looked at her to continue. "In your time, you can see all the surrounding area and the forests. In this time, you can see a lot of the city. It's nice to see how things are going to change. I always love being able to look over all of this."

"If you ever want to see it, all you have to do is ask," he told her. Kagome just laid her head back in the crook of Inuyasha's neck while he just held her. They didn't say anything else but words were not needed. No words could express how they felt at that moment but they had formed a bond that they knew how each other felt. Each hoped that the moment could just last forever. In all their travels, there had been many obstacles that had kept them apart but with the final blow of yesterday's battle they were sure nothing would stand in their way anymore.

An hour and a half had past and neither had moved. As Inuyasha looked down at Kagome's face he wasn't sure if she was even still awake. Her eyes were closed but he could tell from her breathing that she was still enjoying the moment. He didn't want to ruin it but he knew they couldn't stay up there all day. "Kagome?" Inuyasha called to her.

"Yeah?" she responded.

"I think we should get going. We've been up here for a long time and your family will be waking up if they aren't already."

Kagome sighed. "I guess you're right but you're going to have to drop me back in my bedroom so I can get properly dressed." Inuyasha had totally forgotten that she was still in her pajamas. He nodded at her and made his way to her window.

#####

A half an hour later found everyone sitting down at the table eating breakfast. Kagome had to admit Sango and Miroku didn't look to bad in future clothes. Kagome had given Sango some of her clothes while Miroku was wearing some of Inuyasha's. Miroku had been able to get one of Inuyasha's shirts that weren't red.

"So where exactly where are we going?" Sango said.

"I figure I'd give you a good tour of the city. Show you some of the nice historical points and then in the evening I'll show you some more of the future places," Kagome told her.

Inuyasha decided to fill in with just a bit more info. "There's usually more things to do at night."

"All I can say is I'm surprised so far by what I've seen," Miroku said, "so I can't wait to see what's next."

"Just be sure to stay with me and Inuyasha. If you don't, you might get hurt," Kagome said.

"And Miroku, you'll have to keep your hands to yourself or else you'll find yourself in a lot more trouble then just a slap to the face," Inuyasha added.

"Why is that?" Miroku asked.

"People in my time take much more offense to it. There is a harsher penalty the just a slap," Kagome informed.

"Really?" Sango asked intrigued. "This world sounds even better."

#####

It was about 4 o'clock in the afternoon when the group decided to take a break for something to eat. Kagome showed them the wonder that was WacDonalds [**I still feel weird calling it that**]. They had shown Sango and Miroku a few of the temples around Tokyo. Miroku was quite interested to see how his religion was practiced in the modern days. Luckily he had been able to keep his hands to himself but a couple of times he almost got hit by a car since he was to busy staring at some of the girls. Sango had been sure to yell at him for it.

Sango watched as the cars drive by. "It's surprising to find that in the future people will be able to get from one place to another in an hour where it would usually take half a day," Sango said.

"I take it you like the future?" Kagome asked.

"Well there are good and bad points. I really like all the modern conveniences but I like how the past is all open and more of nature," Sango said.

"Yeah I like it too. I feel crowded a lot here at times," Kagome said. "That's why I like the feudal times."

"So what are we going to do now?" Miroku asked.

"Well I have an idea," Inuyasha said. He looked to Kagome, "How about a movie?" He said with a grin.

Kagome noticed and understood his idea. "I think a movie would be great," Kagome agreed.

Sango and Miroku exchanged glances. Neither of them knew what a movie was and though they usually trusted their friends they weren't so sure what they were planning. Their friends then led them to a huge building. Kagome called it a theater. In a little time they walked into a dark room which had many people in it. They looked around the room and Kagome noticed four free seats. The only thing was that they were separated by the walkway. Kagome and Inuyasha sat on one side while Miroku and Sango on the other. They had explained to them that it was like a big TV but they were still surprised when the movie began. It was horror movie but not an overly gross one, Kagome had forbid it. Sango and Miroku were holding hands but not too scared.

Kagome was holding onto Inuyasha though a bit tighter. He saw that she noticed Sango and Miroku as well. "I guess it doesn't work on a demon exterminator as well as we thought," Inuyasha whispered to her.

"Yeah, I know but at least their holding hands," Kagome said. Inuyasha just held Kagome tighter to himself while he turned back to the movie.

#####

It was a little after six when they finally got out of the theater. "That was so cool," Sango said. "I would have never thought that that was possible."

"To be honest, I would have never thought anything I've seen today was possible," Miroku added.

"Yes, well we're not done yet," Kagome said. "Now onto the greatest wonder this world has to offer." Everyone looked at her with curiosity even Inuyasha. "We're going to the mall." Inuyasha sighed.

"You would think the mall is the greatest," Inuyasha said. Kagome just gave him a big smile and led them to the mall which luckily wasn't that far away.

They walked into the mall and were surprised at how many people were there. It was almost as much people as they had saw that entire day. Sango looked around and saw many of the places in there had a lot of the clothes and products that Kagome had brought back to her time. There was a few stores she didn't understand what were for. There was one really close. "What's that place for?" she asked Kagome.

Kagome looked at the place and grinned. "Oh that place is fun. Right Inuyasha?" she asked. Inuyasha turned and saw where she was looking. He knew what she had in mind.

"Oh no," Inuyasha said. "Once is enough for me."

"You know it will be fun besides they need to find out," Kagome said as she pulled the group to the familiar karaoke place. Once they were inside, Kagome broke away from them and went to the front.

"I can't believe she is going to do this," Inuyasha said shaking his head.

"What is she doing?" Sango asked almost worried for her friend.

"In this time, songs are usually more popular and well known than the feudal times. People can come here and sing their favorite songs if they like."

Kagome was soon up in front of everyone ready to sing. "Well this is one of my favorite songs cause it reminds of someone special in my life and I hope that he'll always be there for me when I need him."

Woke up early this morning, made my coffee like I always do.  
Then it hit me from nowhere, everything I feel about me and you.  
The way you kiss me crazy, baby you're so amazing.  
  
Seven days and seven nights of thunder,  
The waters rising and I'm slipping under.  
I think I fell in love with the 8th world wonder.  
  
I guess that I'm just falling deeper into something I've never known.  
But the way that I'm feeling, makes me realize that it can't be wrong.  
You're love's like a summer rain, washing my doubts away.  
  
Seven days and seven nights of thunder,  
The waters rising and I'm slipping under.  
I think I fell in love with the 8th world wonder.  
  
It's only been a week, but it's coming over me.  
It's making me believe that you're the one for me.  
  
Seven days and seven nights of thunder,  
The waters rising and I'm slipping under.  
I think I fell in love with the 8th world wonder.

She repeated the refrain three more time before wrapping up the song. She then walked back to her friends who congratulate her. "That was great Kagome. I never thought you could do something like that," Sango said.

"I'm surprised. With what you were saying up there, I'd say your relationship with Inuyasha has gone a lot farther since we last saw you," Miroku said with a huge grin.

Inuyasha hit him over the head. "You can't necessarily follow the lyrics. Sometimes it's just the mean of the songs as a whole," Inuyasha said to his friend.

Sango was the next to hit him as he recovered. "You just had to ruin a good moment didn't you," she yelled at him.

Miroku took notice to what Sango said but went on with a plan he had concocted. He had noticed what Inuyasha and Kagome had tried in the movie theater, not that he really minded, but now it was time for payback. "That had to take a lot of guts to get up there and do that Kagome," he told her. "Too bad our friend here," he motioned to Inuyasha, "doesn't have the guts to do the same."

Inuyasha as caught off guard. "I've done it before," he said trying to save his pride.

"Well all we have is your word for it. I haven't see anything yet," Miroku said. "Well have to let Kaede and the others know your little weakness." Sango just grinned at him.

Inuyasha's ego couldn't take any more pounding so he gave in. "Fine. I'll do one but if you say one word of any of this to anyone I'll hurt you so much that your pain from that wind tunnel of yours seems like a bee sting."

As Inuyasha walked up to the front, Kagome took a chance to ask Miroku something that she hadn't noticed. "What happened to your Wind Tunnel?"

"Ohh, Midoriko allowed me to use it for about a day. So now that the day is up, I don't have it anymore," he said showing her his palm.

They then turned to hear Inuyasha call out with the microphone. "Okay, I'm doing this to show a friend of mine that I can do this. I was thinking about doing some cocky song but I thought it wouldn't be right since I had a song sung for me. I thought I'd return the favor. This song doesn't totally fit my relationship with her, it's actually our roles reversed but I still think that if you look at the song overall it fits." Inuyasha had added the last part for Miroku.

Kagome was surprised when the song started. It wasn't the usually upbeat song or something like that. It was country, which she hadn't listen to too much, so she paid close attention to the words [**and I hope you do too. Also if you want download Little Moments by Brad Paisley. Very good song**]

Well I'll never forget the first time that I heard,  
That pretty mouth say that dirty word,  
And I can't even remember now what she backed my truck into,  
But she covered her mouth and her face got red,  
And she just looked so darn cute,  
That I couldn't even act like I was mad.  
Yeah I live for little moments like that  
  
Well that's just like last year on my birthday.  
She lost all track of time and burnt the cake,  
And every smoke detector in the house was goin' off,  
And she was just about the cry until I took her in my arms,  
And I tried not to let her see me laugh.  
Yeah I live for little moments like that.  
  
I know she's not perfect but she tries so hard for me,  
And I thank God that she isn't 'cause how boring would that be.  
It's the little imperfections it's the sudden change in plans,  
When she misreads the directions and we're lost but holdin' hands.  
Yeah I live for little moments like that.  
  
When she's layin' on my shoulder on the sofa in the dark,  
And about the time she falls asleep so does my right arm,  
And I want so bad to move it 'cause it's tinglin' and it's numb,  
But she looks so much like an angel that I don't wanna wake her up.  
Yeah I live for little moments,  
When she steals my heart again and doesn't even know it.  
Yeah I live for little moments like that.

Kagome was totally shocked at the words. Sure it was usually the other way around but the song was so full of emotion. She loved it and it reminded her that she loved him. When he finally came over to them she couldn't help herself, she leaned in and gave him a good, long kiss. "That was great. Thank you," she said almost crying.

"Yes, Inuyasha that was wonderful," Miroku said while he faked a tear.

"Just remember to keep your mouth shut," he warned him.

"I see that you two have gotten closer," Sango said as she wasn't afraid to speak up.

"Yeah it has," Kagome said blushing.

"You and Miroku as well," Inuyasha commented and was rewarded with a blush from both of them.

"Oh, I want all the details then but first we have one final thing to do," Kagome said to her friend. "We use the mall for what it was made for,"

"What is that?" Sango asked though she heard Inuyasha groan.

"Shopping," Kagome said happily.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#_**

Well that sums this chapter up. I'll admit it was a bit rushed. I don't know if I'll do a Miroku/Sango karaoke but at this point I don't think so. I might be sending the whole gang back to the fuedal era as soon as the next chapter. So no next chapter title this time. Later.


	47. Chapter 46 A Heart Filled Talk

Well here's yet another chapter. I know its a little short but its the moment that quite a bit of people have been waiting for. I hate to say that it ends with a cliffhanger though.

**_ Newfie/B.C. Girl_** - I'm glad you downloaded the song. I hope you enjoyed it.

**_ allin656_** - yes I know it seems like there isn't much more to go on but because the readers wanted it I still have to explain the whole Sess/Kagura get togther. I'm reasoning about 10 more chapters left (I don't know how many times I've said that before but when I'm finished with the Sess/Kagura, I do an epilogue or two and I'm done).

**_whitemagemeister_**- From what I've seen so far, State College is a great place. I have been going to PSU but to a branch campus. I'm actually moving up to UP in the Fall. So it will be fun then. As for my grammer, I know it sucks but I want to get this out to my readers as soon as possible which means I don't take time to proofread.

**_Valdimarian_** - I am familiar with the term Shinken. It is used in the anime X. They refer to the Shinken as the divine sword, which pretty much means holy sword. I just never realized that Shinken was the actual translation. I thought it was just the name of the sword.

**_Jaden Blythe_** - Ahh the dispute of Inuyasha's true age. I can see where you are coming from about him being between 70-80 but according to what I've heard from the 3rd movie, IY is in fact over 200 years old. I guess even half demons age slower than regular humans. This is how I figure that Tetsusaiga is really old.

**_Rezol_** - Thank you for the link. I haven't had a chance to test it with work and all but I will. I have been told though about a 3rd Tetsusaiga attack and I've also seen things about Sess/Kagura.

**_Sango13_** - Nope all the yakuza are dead so they won't be a problem anymore.

**_brlousee_** - You can tell me who you think Hiko is. I might even tell you if you are right or not. Let me know what you think.

**_Ks-Starshine_** - You know in all the times you reviewed, I've never really looked at you name and thought 'maybe this person is from Kansas.' Funny that you mention it though. One of my friends that I used to work with recently moved to Kansas and got married. What a small world we live in.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Inuyasha but I saving my money up. :)

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 46: A Heart Filled Talk

It had been a week since the final battle had ended. Kagome had shown Miroku and Sango around most of Tokyo and a bit of beyond it. They enjoyed their stay immensely. Unfortunately they knew that they couldn't stay forever and they must be going. They all sat around the table eating one last time before planning to leave. Kagome and Inuyasha were going to go back with their friend for a little bit and then return later that day since they had school the next day.

"I can't believe you're going back," Kagome said.

"I know what you mean, but we can't stay here forever," Sango said. "It's really nice of you to come back with us, even if it's only for a little while."

"Well it has been a while since we've gone back and had a chance to enjoy ourselves. Unlike the last time, where we were just training the whole time," Kagome said.

"Yes, I also would like to inform my father on the turnout of our battle," Inuyasha said.

"I forgot all about them. You mom must be worried sick wondering what happened," Kagome said.

"They might be a little worried but not too bad. I think they trust me and their training enough to know that I'll be okay," Inuyasha said.

"Well why don't we get going? The sooner we get back the more time we can spend there," Miroku added.

#####

Inuyasha and Kagome were the last ones to come up out of the well. Inuyasha had done most of the work though carrying Kagome to the top. Miroku had carried a bag fully of stuff from Kagome's time that she had gotten for them such as hair products and other stuff for Sango, some junk food for Miroku, and she even brought back a bunch of kitten treats which Kirara had taken a liken to while there. Kagome mind giving them to Sango. Buyo was fat enough without the treats. The group made their way to Kaede's so as to see Inuyasha's parents.

"I see ye have return well," Kaede said greeting them from her herb garden.

"Yes, the fight went well," Kagome told them. "We even had help." She motioned towards Sango and Miroku.

"Well I was just about to make dinner, ye can tell me while I make it," Kaede said as they made their way to her hut.

"So where are my parents?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well they got tired of waiting for you to come back and decided to check out the area around here. That was a few days ago, so they should return sometime soon."

In the meantime, Inuyasha and Kagome took turns filling Kaede in on what happened in the future. Sango and Miroku had taken over to explain how they had gotten there. Many things had been left out such as Tai's true identity and even the part about Shippo and Souten since he lived so close to Kaede. Sango and Miroku had mentioned Kyo and Rika but only Inuyasha and Kagome knew the full truth about them. They had finished tell the battles events shortly after finished the food Kaede had prepared.

Afterwards Inuyasha was a little restless and spoke up. "I'm getting tired of sitting here. I need to get some fresh air. Would you like to come Kagome?" Inuyasha asked though it seemed like he wanted to talk to her in private.

"Yeah sure," Kagome said. She then turned to her friends. "We'll be back in a bit."

"So how are things going with those two?" Kaede asked as soon as they had left.

"They've gotten quite far. Inuyasha even openly admits that he's in love with Kagome now," Sango said. "I was quite surprised by his behavior but I'm glad they're finally happy together."

"And how goes things with ye two?" Kaede asked Sango and Miroku.

Sango and Miroku blushed a bit but Miroku still answered saying, "Things have been going rather well."

"As I can see," the old miko replied.

"I don't think Inuyasha just wanted fresh air," Miroku said trying to change the subject.

"I think he just wanted to be alone with Kagome for a time," Sango said.

"I agree but it also seems he has a lot on his mind. Do you know what is bothering him?" she asked but they just shook their heads.

#####

Inuyasha and Kagome made their way though Inuyasha's Forest and they walked together hand in hand. Kagome could sense his nervousness and she was starting to get worried. It finally got to a point where she couldn't take it anymore. "What's wrong Inuyasha?"

"Ah.. um…" Inuyasha was unsure about how he could come out and talk to her.

"Just say it," Kagome urged him.

"Well… you see back when we stayed at my parents castle I got a chance to talk with my mother about some things and when Miroku and Sango showed up it reminded me about those things."

"Such as?"

"Well I was wondering, what do you plan on doing after you finish High School?" Kagome was caught off guard by this.

"To tell you the truth Inuyasha, I really don't know. I should have started submitting things for college already but I haven't. I'm not sure if I could even get in this year."

"But even if you do go to college, what do you plan on doing with your life after wards?"

Kagome was starting to get worried. Inuyasha seemed to have thought a lot of this over before talking to her. The fact that he had really thought this over meant something important. "I really don't know. With the traveling from here to my time I haven't really had much time to think about my future. What about you? Have you thought much about the future?"

"I have some what," Inuyasha admitted. "I personally don't like school that much which is why I really don't care to go to college. I really want to spend more time back here especially where I can see my parents a bit more."

"I understand, Inuyasha. You really never got to know your parents that well and I think it would be best to spend time here with them," Kagome said letting a little bit of sadness seep into her voice.

"There's only one problem. I don't want to leave you behind. If I come back I want you to come with me," Inuyasha said.

Kagome perked back up at this. "Inuyasha I'd love to come spend more time here with you. You act as if I don't want to come back here at all. If I did that I think I'd miss people too much besides its much more beautiful here," she said as she looked around.

Inuyasha seemed slightly relieve at her reply. "That reminds me. There's one place I want to show you," Inuyasha said as he led her on through the forest. They had been walking for quite a while so they had gone a long way but Inuyasha's Forest was big so it could take some time to get through.

Inuyasha had been so caught up in his conversation with Kagome and now showing her something that he failed to notice that they were being followed by two people. [**I must ask myself, what is it with me and mystery people? lol**]

"How much longer until we get there?" Kagome asked cause her feet hurt from walking.

"It's right up here," he said. Just then they reached the end of Inuyasha's Forest and what Kagome saw was simply breathtaking. There was a beautiful waterfall. "I take it you like it?" Kagome could only nod. Inuyasha led her over to a small section of the water that seemed to be cut off from the rest of the water. She soon noticed why. There was a hot spring near the bottom of the waterfall. "It's really hard to get to this place unless you come through the forest which I usually kept people out of anyway so I'd guess that no one has been here in a long time."

"This is what I like about this time. All of the area is so beautiful especially this," Kagome said. "You're really nice to keep showing me places like this."

"I knew you like it. That's why I brought you," he said. Inuyasha seemed to go tense again. "Another reason I brought you here was I wanted to continue talking to you and I thought here would be the best place."

Kagome waited but he didn't say anything. "Well?" she asked him. He said something but it was all mumbled and he wasn't looked at her when he said it. She then decided to find out what exactly he wanted. She walked up to him and grabbed his chin forcing him to look at her. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I wanted to ask you something," he said. She just looked at him to continue. Inuyasha swallowed and asked the hardest question ever. "I was wondering if you would be willing to spend the rest of your life with me?" As soon as he had said it he averted his eyes from Kagome. He didn't know what her answer would be but if it was bad he didn't want to be looking her in the eyes when she said it.

Kagome was totally shocked by his question. She figured the question had to do with them but she never expect this big of a question so soon. He was asking her to marry him or in his terms become his mate. In the back of her head, she knew this would come up sooner or later but she had expected them to talk about the idea before he actually popped the question. She noticed that Inuyasha wasn't looking at her and she felt less pressure because of that but she could also tell he was getting worried since she hadn't answered.

Inuyasha's ears peaked up as he heard her start to speak. "I would love to say yes, Inuyasha," she said. His heart almost sank at the way she said that. "But there's one problem."

**_&%&%&%&%&%%&&%&%&%%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%_**

That's an evil cliffhanger isn't it? I know you probably hate me for that. I'll try to update soon. In the mean time here's a new fic that I just read today and its great. You should really check it out:

**_Alter Ego _**by _FrameofMind_ storyid=1762642 - This story is just great. If you think my cliffhangers are bad just wait until you read this story. Luckily for you this story is just missing its epilogue so you don't have to worry about the cliffys that much. Please take the time to read this story. You won't be disappointed.

Anyway, that's all for today. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 47: Smoothing Out the Wrinkles**


	48. Chapter 47 Smoothing Out the Wrinkles

Okay I have one thing to get off my chest before this goes any further. Today, July 5th, my great-grandfather passed away. He was a great influence on my life. From when I was 8 years old I had a paper route and up to 3-4 years ago, he was the person that drove me on the route (I live in a place where you need to drive around). While he did criticize my hobbies he was a great man and I loved him very much. This death has effected me both positively and negatively. I am saddened to lose him but I also had expected it. After getting knee surgery 3 years ago he was never the same. The positive effect is that I am even more determined to finish this story. My great grandfather always like to tell me about setting my mind on something and as long as I tried hard enough I can accomplish it. Truth be told, I have never finished one story yet (my Gundam story was the closest I came but since I have another idea for it yet, I don't consider it complete). I guarantee that I will finish this story and, as a matter of fact, I am dedicating this to him. May he rest in peace.

I'm sorry about boring you with that, if I did but I vent stuff much more in my writing and sharing it with others. I consider it a little selfish but I feel better saying what I did. Now to be unselfish, review responses (by the way, I pick who is really wanting to know something in person. If you want to make sure I respond just say so):

**_Shippo-fan92_** - I know I didn't give too much detail about the mystery people. By the end of this chapter it's pretty obvious who they were. If you still can't figure it out, I'll gladly tell you.

**_whitemagemeister_** - I glad your surprised that there is a problem. That means it worked. As for the problem it was covered a long time ago but never between IY and Kagome together.

**_Flare4ever_** - What made you think IY and Kag couldn't be together. I may play tricks, like last chapter insert evil laugh, but I don't believe in something that cruel.

**_Newfie/B.C. Girl - _**Sorry to get you all worked up. I like to keep people on the edge and keep the story interesting. I find that cliffhangers do that really good, they also get a lot of reviews. :D

**_Fire Witch1_** - You know alot of people keep saying they are surprised to find out I'm a guy and I'm really glad to hear it. It means that I'm doing a damn good job even though I always thought that with a pen name like Spider people would think I'm a guy.

**_lil-inu-blondie-babe-10_** - That's a long name but anyway both of the problems you mentioned are mentioned in this chapter. Don't worry everything will be solved. As for your story, you don't need to thank me. I'm glad I read it. It's a good story that I look forward to reading more. BTW, I say that IY and Kag get to keep Satsuki. She seems real nice. Not to mention I have a feeling that instead of Kag stay with IY, IY will stay with Kag. Just my thoughts though.

Well I'm glad everyone has kept up. I also found it funny that I got 18 reviews in the first day and I'd estimate that at least 90% thought I was evil for the cliffy. Ha. Well there isn't really much of a cliff hanger at the end of this chapter. There is something at the end of next chapter, I believe. Now enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 46: Smoothing Out the Wrinkles

"I would love to say yes, Inuyasha," she said. His heart almost sank at the way she said that. "But there's one problem."

Inuyasha's face totally fell at hearing this. He looked at her with a bit of hurt in his eyes. "Please don't tell me you're in love with someone else?" Inuyasha said full of emotion. Even the two onlookers looked at the two lovers with worry.

"No that isn't it at all," Kagome quickly replied.

"Is it because I'm this ugly hanyou that no one would accept you being with?" Inuyasha asked again.

"WILL YOU STOP IT!" she yelled at him. She then walked up to him and put her hand on his cheek forcing him to look at her. "Don't you ever degrade yourself. You're a wonderful person. You're not ugly and I really don't give a damn what anyone else would think. But this does have somewhat to do with you being a hanyou." Inuyasha was about to speak but Kagome put a finger to his lips to keep his mouth shut. "Let me finish. I don't find you any less of a person because you're a hanyou. You're the same person I feel in love with and that will never change, no matter what you are. The thing is, as a hanyou you'll live a lot longer than I will." Kagome could feel him trying to speak but she put her whole hand to his mouth to keep him from speaking. "I'm not done. If I remember correctly, as it is now you're 200 years old. As a 'weak' human, I'll only live for 80 years, 100 if I'm lucky. I know you'd stay with me until the end but I couldn't make you do that for me. It wouldn't be fair. I'll be old and wrinkled and you'll barely look any different. I don't want that to happen so I can't be with you." As she finished she collapse onto him and just cried.

Inuyasha held on to her tightly and let her cry into his chest. He was relieved to hear what was bothering her. He spoke softly and gently to her, "Kagome, don't ever think of yourself as weak. I know I've said it before but I never meant it. I know a lot of demons that wouldn't think of doing some of the stuff that you have done. Fighting Naraku and every demon we came across during our shard hunt. You stay with me even though I tried to keep you safe and away you came back. In your time, you fought an entire demon army with me. There are very few demons would do that. I'll admit I was even worried about that fight." Kagome had stopped crying shortly after his speech began. She could see he was being totally truthful with his words. "In some ways you are even stronger than me. I don't mean physical strength. Your power comes from here," he said pointing to her heart. "You've stuck with me through everything good that has happened in my life. I'm a better person now than I was when you released me 3 years ago. I want you to continue to stay with me. And before you even tell me no again, I can happily tell you that there is a way for us to be together."

Kagome felt tears come to her eyes again. These out of happiness that they could be together. "How?" she asked.

"Back when we visited my parents at the castle I had a talk with my mother. I was afraid of the same thing, yet she helped to calm my fears," he told her. Kagome was surprised. He had actually been thinking about this for quite a while. He had actually sat down and talked with his mom about it. She found even more respect for her hanyou lover. She listened as he continued his explanation, "you may not realize it but my mom and dad were together for a while before I was born. Even now she has barely changed since when her and my dad married. I hadn't realized it but she pointed it out to me. The reason she is the same is because of a miko spell she was able to cast. When a demon mates with another demon or even a hanyou, it is usually for life. It is not only a personal commitment but a spiritual one as well. The miko spell makes that connection possible for a human to a demon but it goes a little further. The spell tied together my mom and dad's life energy. Her life is extended so that they age at the same rate."

"We could do the same thing?" Kagome asked with hope.

"Yes, we would be able to be together for the rest of our lives. Would you stay with me for the rest of our lives?" Inuyasha asked once again.

Kagome just closed the small gap that had formed during their talk. Rather than grab him around the chest as she had before, she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Yes!" she exclaimed before kissing him. He gladly held onto her and returned her kiss.

The two spies were happy at what they had seen. "Let's leave them alone," the one said. "We'll see them soon enough." The other nodded and they quickly left before being spotted.

Inuyasha and Kagome just held each other for a while. They were happy with the moment and thought about the ones to come. It was Inuyasha who finally broke the silence. "Do you want to head back and tell the others or do you want to stay here a little longer?"

"Right now I don't want to think about having to walk back. My feet are still sore from the walk here," she told him.

Inuyasha looked at her and got an idea. "Take off your socks and shoes," he told her. She looked at him confused but she did it anyway. He then picked her up and walked with her to the hot spring. He slowly set Kagome on the ground but let her feet sit in the hot spring. He then scrunched up his fire rat pants and sat down next to her with his feet in the spring. "Better?"

"Much. Thank you," she smiled at him and she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You're welcome," he said. He was still a little nervous because there was more things they need to talk about. He didn't want to ruin their good moment but he would rather get the worrisome things behind them so they could fully look forward to the times to come. "Kagome, what are we going to do about the time difference?"

"You mean the fact that I'm from the future and you're from this time?" she asked. He nodded in response. "Well I was worried about that as well. I didn't want to leave my time and never be able to see my family and friends again. I also didn't want to deprive you of living in that which you've always known as your home. But I don't think we have to worry about that anymore?"

"What do you mean?" he asked her.

"If I am able to live as long as you then I figure if we live in this time, we should live until my time where I'll get to see my family and friends again. The only thing I wonder is how old will I look. You seem to be about 20 years old after more than 200 so in about four … five hundred years, I'll look like I'm 60. No one will recognize me. Ahhh!!!" Kagome screamed getting really worried. Inuyasha just laughed at her peril. "Don't laugh it isn't funny!"

"You're getting too worked up. Most youkai age the most physically until they are about 20 years old. From there, they physically age at a much slower rate," Inuyasha said. "My dad doesn't look that old but he's actually well over a millennia old, just don't remind him of that."

Kagome gave a small laugh but not just at Inuyasha's joke. He looked at her a little puzzled when she laughed a little longer than usual. After a few moments she got a hold of herself. "I'm sorry I just found it a little funny that you said millennia. You never were a person for big words." Inuyasha just gave a 'Feh' in response which made Kagome laugh again.

"Anyway," Inuyasha said trying to change the subject. "If we do live in my era when we finally do reach your time we'll practically look the same. If you tried to pick up your life where you left off, no one would notice."

"That is assuming I could remember what I did the day before or to us it would be 500 years before." Both Inuyasha and Kagome laughed together which felt just right to both of them.

"I'd love to stay here forever but if we don't at least get out of this spring my legs are going to be jello," Inuyasha said as he took his feet out of the pool and stood up.

"I agree. We've kept Miroku and Sango waiting long enough. We should head back," Kagome added.

"Hop on," he said as he was hunched over. "That way you don't have to walk." Kagome gladly got on his back and they took off.

#####

Meanwhile Miroku and Sango patiently awaited their friends return. They had been gone for a bit. "Perhaps we are giving them too much time?" Miroku wondered.

"Yes, I'm starting to worry as well," Sango agreed but just before they got up to go search two people walked in.

"Ah, Miroku, Sango, so good to see you again," Inutaisho said as he greeted his son's friends. Izayoi bowed in acknowledgment.

"It's good to see you too sir," Miroku said. "We were just about to set out to find Inuyasha. He's been gone for a while."

"Don't worry about him or Kagome. They're just fine," Izayoi said with a large smile.

"So you ran into them?" Sango inquired.

"We've seen them," Inutaisho said still smiling. "They'll be back later. Just give them time."

**_#############################_**

Well know its obvious who was watching IY and Kag. I wish I could say much more but I'm really tired and I have work tomorrow. I can say that there are about 2 or 3 more chapters of fluff before we get back into some action and delve into the mysterious origins of Sess/Kagura's relationship. I'm not going to stretch that out too much. It will probably seem to go by fast compared to the rest of the story but that's cause it was added late. Also I think I've gotten far away from the meaning of the title. Anyway until then enjoy another story:

**_ A Tragic Love_** by _co Tsukino _storyid=1676430 - This is a really good story. Far more suspense then mine Don't let the title fool you. It isn't an Angst story. Its Romance/Humor. I really enjoyed it though I was getting worried at the end.

Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 47: Spreading the Good News**


	49. Chapter 48 Spreading the Good News

I know, your probably looking at this thinking, "He can't be updating so soon. He hasn't done this in a long while." Well I am updating. I really got into writing this chapter and I hope that the next chapter will come out quickly as well. We're going to have about 1 more fluff chapter (2 at the most) before I get back into some Action/Adventure and deal with the Sess/Kagura. That part may seem a little rushed but that's because it isn't 100% thought out and was added later in the story. Now for responses so I can go to sleep (its almsot 1 AM and will be by the time I finish this):

**_KennaS_** - I didn't take your review as offensive. It is constructive criticism which I don't mind at all. If I had been following the original plan I would have done one regular chapter after the Army battle and then an epilogue but because the reviewers wanted it. I'll be explaining how the Sess/Kagura relationship came about but I wanted to get some nice fluff chapters in between. Notice the story genre is Drama/Romance. Since it is listed as drama I try to keep a mix of Action/Adventure and regular character interactions. As for re-reading the chapter, I know I should but since I usually finish a chapter at like 1 AM (like this time), I tend to be too tired to do it and I want to get the chapter out to you readers ASAP so I put it out without too much checking. As for loopholes, I keep my eye out for those big time. I have a habit of reading other peoples stories and if I notice or it seems like a loophole is coming I try to point it out to the author. Thanks again for your help.

**_Torina Archelda_** - IY's parents can't come through the well. For the 3 people watching the battle, you have it right. IY's parents were following him in the past. As for Izayoi's name, from what I've been able to find out that is her actual name and it is mentioned in the 3rd movie (I can't wait to see it).

**_Dark Inu Fan_** - Kagome does keep Midoriko's sword with her.

**_Kourtney1617 _**- Your idea for a sequel mentions the most horrible thing ever to me, a time paradox (don't be offended, you idea is good). I hate time paradoxes, they make me think too much. It gives me a headache to try and think about it. Though I might think about your idea.

****Thank you all for your support with my grandfather. Its good to know there are so many caring people still out there.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY.****

****

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 48: Spreading the Good News

Inuyasha and Kagome made their way into Kaede's hut. Inuyasha had already known from the scents in the air that his parents were inside.

"Inuyasha, it's good to see you again," Izayoi said as she came over and hugged her son.

"It's good to see you too, mom," Inuyasha said as he gently returned her embrace.

"So tell us how the battle went," Inutaisho beckoned.

"Well before I get into that, there's something I want to tell all of you," he said as he looked at everyone in the room and then back at Kagome. Inutaisho and Izayoi just smiled at each other quickly. "Kagome has agreed to become my mate," he said as his face became red.

Miroku, Sango, and Kaede stood there in total shock. Miroku and Sango had known that the couple had gotten closer but they had never imagined that they had gotten that close. Kaede was surprised and happy for them at the same time. Inuyasha then noticed his parents were standing there smiling the same as before. "Aren't you surprised?" he asked them.

"Not really dear," his mother said. "We expected you two would get together soon enough."

"I don't think I could be any more proud of you, my son," Inutaisho said as he slapped his sons back in congratulations.

"Thanks," Inuyasha said as he steadied himself. Inuyasha was full of pride at that moment. All his life, Inuyasha had felt that he had been a shame to his father's name. He knew his father didn't actually feel that way but everyone he knew looked down upon him. He being a hanyou had brought shame upon his father in the eyes of others. Inuyasha truly felt happy in every aspect of his life. He had his parents. He had his friends. And most importantly he had the love of his life, Kagome.

Inuyasha and Kagome spent the next hour talking with their friends about their future and also speculating what could happen. As the sun was going down, they realized that they had to be heading back to Kagome's time. They bid everyone a farewell and headed off. Not soon after, Miroku and Sango announced that they had to get going too.

"Are ye sure? It will take a long time to reach your village," Kaede asked.

"I agree with Kaede," Inutaisho said. "I think it would be best if you stayed tonight and left tomorrow. Besides I would like to talk with you."

"I guess we could stay," Sango said. "But what is it that you want to talk about?"

"Well it's very important and I would also like you to rely what we tell you to your parents, okay?" Izayoi added.

Both agreed and listened to what Inuyasha's parents had to say.

#####

When Inuyasha and Kagome finally made it back to Kagome's house they found that no one was home. "So what are we going to do?" Kagome asked Inuyasha.

"Well we can just wait for them to arrive and then when they get here you can tell them the good news," Inuyasha told her.

"Me? You've going to leave me to tell them without any help from you?" Kagome asked shocked.

"Well I can provide emotional support," he responded with a small laugh. "I broke the news to my parents so you can break the news to yours."

"That's not fair. I never agreed to that," Kagome whined.

"It isn't that bad, Kagome. Your mom has always liked me and since I've been living here I think even your dad and grandfather like me too."

"I think the only reason Grampa didn't like you was because you looked like a demon," Kagome said.

He looked at her funny before it struck him. "I totally forgot about the disguise spell you put on me," Inuyasha said.

"So did I until now," Kagome said. "But that still doesn't give me a good reason to tell my parents all by myself."

"You won't be all by yourself. I'll still be here," Inuyasha said even though he knew what she meant. Kagome was about to complain more but the front door opened and her family started to come in.

"Inuyasha, Kagome, it's good to see that you are home," Mrs. Higurashi said.

"So what did we miss by not being here?" Kagome asked.

"We just went out to eat," she said with a grin.

"What's wrong, Kagome?" her father asked. "You look like something is bothering you."

"Can I talk to just you and mom," Kagome asked. Her mother quickly shooed Souta off to bed and Grampa made his way outside saying he was going to check on the shrine. Now that it was just them, Kagome felt her cheeks get hot and looked to the ground. She didn't know how to tell her parents. She felt a hand on her shoulder and saw that it belongs to Inuyasha. As she looked at him she felt as if she had the confidence to tell them. "Inuyasha asked me to marry him… and I said yes." Kagome waited for any of them to start going crazy with either anger or joy but neither came. She then looked at them in shock.

"We're so happy for you Kagome," Mrs. Higurashi came forward and hugged her daughter. She then let go of Kagome and hugged Inuyasha.

"Okay, what's going on? I figured you'd be squealing like crazy or something. Not just looking at me like I said I got an A on a test," Kagome said.

"Of course, I'm happy for you, Kagome," her mother said. "It's just that you've been traveling with Inuyasha for 3 years now. If you would have told me 6 months ago, I would have been totally surprised but since you had asked if Inuyasha could stay with us these past few months, it made me realize just how close you two are."

Kagome could tell her mom was lying or at least telling a half truth but didn't want to push her mother any more. She then turned to her father, "How do you feel about this, dad?"

"If this would have happened before all the yakuza stuff, I would have been furious. I hated all kinds of demons," he said and then turned to Inuyasha, "but you opened my eyes to the truth. Just like people, there are good and bad demons out there. I let my first meeting with demons sour all other relations with them. You came here with my daughter and protected her even though no one had asked you. I was wanted by the yakuza yet you stood in there way and took that debt from me and onto yourself. You faced down an entire demon army just to save me and my family. If you show that kind of devotion to my daughter all the time, I'm glad to have you as my son-in-law."

"Thank you," Inuyasha stuttered out stunned by the man's speech. Inuyasha and Kagome continued to talk to her parents about some future arrangements. It was decided that the human wedding would occur in the future a little before they went back into the past. The demon mating part would occur in the past when they moved back there.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

I know another short chapter but ohh well. About one more fluff chapter and then back into the action. There will be jumping ahead in time with the next two chapters. I also wanted to say that I won't be going into detail about the wedding or anything like that. I know I'd suck at trying to put that in so I'm going to practically skip it. I might to the reception afterwards or so. As for the demon part, I might do some of that since I just got this cool story idea dealing with the demon mating ritual. I might tell you about it later. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 49: Moving Forward into the Future...or is it the Past? (With help)** - There are 2 bits of foreshadowing in this chapter. One has to do with this chapter, the other with the epilogue (when I finally get to it). I also don't mean that I'm writing the next chapter with help. That has to do with the topic of the chapter.


	50. Chapter 49 Moving Forward into the Futu...

Sorry once again for the late update. I got a little caught up in my work. I'm glad to say that here is another chapter to the story. This has gotten quite long. I would have never guessed it would go for this long. But if you're happy then I'm happy.

**_LadyKaa28_** - Congrats for being my 1500th reviewer.

**_Shippo123456_** - Actually when you mention the man in the tree from the USA, there was no person like that. You are referring to Hiko. He is in the US and did not watch the battle. It was mentioned that he would be coming from the US to Japan though. To find out about him and the others you'll have to wait until the end.

**_Ryguy5387_** - This is the last chapter of fluff for now. The ending will have fluff so don't worry about that.

**_Ks-Starshine_** - I know this story seems to go on forever but it will be coming to a close. I had planned to end it soon after the yakuza but since people wanted the back story on Sess/Kagura I planned out a little more.

**_Larka the White Wolf_** - The younger Shippo does make a small appearance in this chapter but it will most likely be his last.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Though I did write other fics, no other ones were IY. I do have a Gundam: 08th MS Team one posted which you are welcome to read but it is no where near as complicated as this story has become.

**_Torina Archelda_** - The story will be coming to a close soon but not just yet. We still have somewhere between 5-10 chapters left. I'm going to cover the Sess/Kagura relationship (IY and Kag will be present) and then do the epilogue.

Just to let you know, I have gotten a chance to see the 3rd IY movie. I know know what IY's father is like. Unfortunately he isn't exactly like I portray him. If you've seen the movie just think of my portrayal as the side of Inutaisho you didn't see in the movie. Also though I have tried my hardest to avoid it, it seems there will be one small conflict within the story plot. You'd have to really study the details to see what it is though so that's why I'm overlooking it. See if you can find it.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 49: Moving Forward into the Future...or is it the Past? (With help)

Inuyasha and Kagome looked over everything in front of them. Everything was practically as perfect as it could be. It had only been a month since they had graduated from school that they had been married. It had taken a while to settle on the agreement of when it should occur. Inuyasha had also insisted that they perform the demon part of the ritual either the same day or the following. This meant that they would have to leave to go back to the feudal era shortly after the wedding.

They had many troubles setting up the wedding in less than a year. **[If my timing is correct, IY proposed to Kagome somewhere between Halloween and Thanksgiving so they had a little over 6 months. Just thought I'd let you know.]** But in the end the wedding had gone successfully. Inuyasha had been a bit sad that his parents could not attend but he felt it was only fair. Kagome's parents would not be around when they went through the demon mating ritual while his would be. He had talked with his parents so as to let them know the arrangements he had made in the future.

Kagome looked out on the group that was there at the shrine celebrating her wedding. Most of the people had been family. Kagome had been a little sad about not being able to have Inuyasha's family come so she made sure to at least invite Tai. He was talking with her parents at the moment. Kagome had also invited some good friends from school such as Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. They had been a bit surprised when she had told them that she was marrying Inuyasha. They supported her none the less. She had even confronted Hojo with the news and he was happy for her. He had started going out with another girl so Kagome was glad that he was no longer hung up on her.

"Kagome?" her friends called to her as they waved their hands in front of her face. Kagome finally came out of her reminiscing to see her friends in front of her. "Are you sure you okay? You're acting like you did before when you used to be sick all the time."

"Sorry about that. I'm fine I was thinking about everything," she told them.

"Yeah, I guess it is a bit overwhelming," Yuka said.

"So what are you two going to do now? Where are you going to live?" Eri asked.

"You know I'm not one hundred percent sure. We're going to look for a place but in the mean time I figured we'd live here at the shrine until then." She knew it was partly a lie. Tomorrow morning they were leaving for the past and she wouldn't see them for almost 500 years. It made her sad to think about that but she was happy to be with Inuyasha and also know that she would at least see them again.

"That's good. Please tell us that when you move out you're not going to leave Tokyo," Yuka pleaded.

"You don't have to worry about that. I don't want to leave my home city," Kagome assured them.

Kagome continued to talk to her friends and everyone else that had been kind to visit they party. Inuyasha managed the best he could. The only people he knew were Kagome's family and some of the people from school. Many had people had wondered up and talked with him. Inuyasha would just talk to them as if he had known them all his life. After a few hours it was finally over and he was glad. He had been able to spend some time with Kagome during the celebration but not much. Tomorrow they would leave for his time and they would truly be together for the rest of their lives. He didn't want it any other way. He really wanted to show Kagome how much he loved her but he knew he would have to wait. Tomorrow they would be on their own.

#####

Kagome and Inuyasha check over everything they had packed. They brought plenty of stuff that would last them about two weeks until they could find a suitable place to live. Then they would return to get anything else they would need. Plenty of ramen was a necessity as far as he was concerned.

"I'm sorry to see you go so soon after your wedding," Mrs. Higurashi cried as she hugged her daughter.

"Don't worry honey. We'll see her again," her husband assured her.

"Yeah mom. You know Inuyasha and I will have to come back for some things, so you'll definitely see us again," Kagome said to her. "I love you, mom."

"I love you too, Kagome," she cried as she hugged her even more.

In the meantime, Mr. Higurashi walked over to Inuyasha. "I'm sorry to see both of you go. I'll never be able to thank you enough for all that you've done for my family."

"You don't have to worry. I do it all again for Kagome," Inuyasha said.

"I know. I want to ask a favor of you though I know you'd do it without me even asking," he said. "Take care of her."

"I will. You can count on that," Inuyasha assured him. With a few more words between the family they wrapped up everything they needed to before departing.

Kagome's mother continued to cry after they had gone. Her husband held her and comforted her. "Don't worry. You know she'll be fine," he told her.

"I know. It's just hard to see her go," she said through her sobs. Her husband just held her.

#####

Even though the bag on his back was heavy and Kagome had her own, Inuyasha grabbed her and brought them to the ground right outside the well. Kagome looked around for a bit. "It's good to be back," she said happily. Inuyasha didn't respond though. Kagome quickly could hear a low growl emitting from him. "What's wrong?" Inuyasha didn't reply but instead motion towards one part of the woods. Kagome looked and watched as Inuyasha's parents emerged to welcome them. Kagome still didn't understand but it didn't take long to notice there was a third person with them. Sesshomaru was following after his father.

When they finally were close, Inuyasha spoke. "What is he doing here?" Inuyasha could barely contain his growl.

"Inuyasha! Contain your anger," his father warned in a stern tone of voice. "I told you once before that I wanted you and your brother to find peace. I want this to be a first step for towards that goal. Also the mating ritual is a family affair and no matter how much you try to deny it, Sesshomaru is family."

"I am here because father requested my presence without a reason. I just recently got here and father has insisted I be here," Sesshomaru said making it clear that he didn't want to be there any more than Inuyasha wanted him. "Can we get this over with so I may be going?"

"I agree with him," Inuyasha said.

"Inuyasha, this is not something to be rushed just because you are in a bad mood," his father warned. "Calm yourself down and then we will begin." Kagome didn't totally like the idea of being rushed either but she didn't totally like Sesshomaru around either. The other fact was that the demon ritual was much shorter than a human marriage. The pledges that were made between demon mates would only take a few minutes. Kagome took the bag which she had been carrying from her time and set it on the ground.

Inuyasha then realized that in his anger he had totally forgotten about the bag on his shoulder. He slowly set it down and let the anger seep out of him. About a minute later he spoke to his father, "I am ready."

They looked to Kagome. "I am ready as well."

Inutaisho nodded and looked to his wife and first son. They nodded. He then slowly began to say something in a language that Kagome had never heard before. She figured it was some sort of demon language. From the look in their eyes, Izayoi and Sesshomaru fully understood what was being said. Kagome then looked to Inuyasha who seemed to be as lost as she was.

Inuyasha had no idea what his father was really saying but he trusted him none the less. Inuyasha knew that if he would have grown up with his father he probably would have learned the language. He was not saddened by this though. If things had not turned out as they did he would have never met Kagome and he couldn't imagine life without her anymore. Inuyasha then heard his father's speech come to an end. His mother then said something small in the demon tongue. Sesshomaru then spoke saying the same thing Izayoi had. All of them looked at Inuyasha then.

His father had told him everything that was required of him for the mating ritual. Inuyasha then looked to Kagome and she nodded that she was ready. She too knew what would come next. Inuyasha leaned in a bit her right at her shoulder blade. Kagome tensed up for just a second as the fangs punctured her skin. When some blood came out of the wound, Inuyasha removed his fangs. He then moved his finger to wipe up some of the blood on his finger. Using that blood, he drew a symbol, which his father had told him was their family crest. As he did this he spoke, "I ask that the gods above approve of my joining with Kagome. I wish that you join our souls for the rest of our life and our lives to come." As soon as the crest was complete, the blood set into her skin and it made a permanent mark. It looked similar to a birthmark or tattoo.

Kagome felt the pain totally go away when Inuyasha had finished the mark. Inuyasha smiled as he looked at Kagome. She then gather up her miko energy within herself. Kagome then bit Inuyasha in the shoulder as well. She just barely broke his skin and she could feel some of his blood in her mouth. Then she traced a symbol over the wound as well. "I ask that the gods above approve of my joining with Inuyasha. I wish that you join our souls for the rest of our life and our lives to come." She then finished the symbol. Izayoi had taught her that the mark was to show the mating of a miko with a demon. Kagome then looked back at Inuyasha and smiled.

There was one final thing to do that would test to make sure the ritual was a success. They both leaned towards each other and their lips met in a passionate kiss. Each could feel the other's energy as it mixed with their own. This was proof that ritual worked. They wanted to stay together but broke away as they her Inuyasha's parents clapping at their success.

"Congratulations son," Inutaisho said as he hugged his son. He then turned to Kagome, "I am honored to have you as part of my family."

"I'm so glad I was able to be a part of this," Izayoi said as she cried a bit while hugging her son. She then went to Kagome as well. "I knew this day would come and I'm glad it's finally here. Since I met you I couldn't wait until you were officially my daughter."

"I'm glad to be part of this family," Kagome told them.

"Well if that is all, I think I will be going," Sesshomaru announced as he turned to leave.

"I am going to talk to your brother really quick," Inutaisho said as he walked over to his eldest son. "Tell me. Why is it that you hate Inuyasha? Do you even know why?"

"Though you may have thought otherwise, I have given it some consideration before. Do you remember the night you passed away?" Sesshomaru questioned his father.

"I do. We had talked just prior to my leaving to save Izayoi," Inutaisho said and he had an idea as to where this was going.

"That night you asked me if I planned to kill you. While that was not my intention, I had intended to challenge you."

"You wanted to be able to prove to yourself that you had surpassed me, correct?"

"Yes. But unfortunately you decided to leave before I could to save Inuyasha and his mother. It was because of Inuyasha that I was not able to truly show that I had bested you. Even then when Sou'unga reappeared I was not given the chance to show that I could contain the power of the sword just as you had. Instead Inuyasha had to wield it foolishly and now it resides in the Underworld. Because of him I was once again deprived."

"I can understand some of your argument, Sesshomaru, but it was my choice to go after Izayoi that night not Inuyasha's. Besides it was not that battle that killed me. When you and I spoke I was badly injured from fighting Ryuukotsusei. It was those wounds that ultimately killed me. Besides would you have fought me in that condition? If so your victory would be meaningless. You would have been able to truly surpass me if both of us were at our best," Inutaisho told him. "But that is behind us now. I am alive once more and you are welcome to challenge me. I do not see any reason for you to hate your brother anymore."

"My reason might be gone but the feelings are not. The hate which has built up over the last 200 years of my life will no simply vanish."

"Promise me that you will at least try to give your brother a chance, just as you now have your chance to fight me," Inutaisho said.

"I will try, that is all I can say," Sesshomaru barely agreed. "I will not challenge you today. I will prepare for this fight and I would highly doubt you would accept with today's events. Now that we have resolved this, I must be going."

"Take care my son and I await your challenge," Inutaisho said as his oldest son departed. He then walked back over to Inuyasha and Kagome.

"Is everything okay?" Inuyasha asked as he kept an eye on Sesshomaru as he walked away.

"Everything is fine. I don't think that Sesshomaru will cause much more trouble. Do me a favor though. If he comes by again, try to be nice. I hope that you two can resolve your issues," Inutaisho told his son.

Inuyasha was a little unsure about what his father was suggested but he trusted him. "I will try but I'm not the one who's been trying to kill him for the longest time."

"I know that, Inuyasha, but if you don't give him a chance nothing will get better between you two," his father said.

"Okay, that's enough about that you two," Izayoi said. "So what do you two plan on doing now that your going to be living here?"

"Well we figured we'd stay with Kaede for a little bit until we could get ourselves settled," Kagome replied.

"You could have talked with us about staying with us," Izayoi said.

"That's alright we didn't want to burden you," Inuyasha said.

"It wouldn't have been any trouble," Izayoi said.

"Don't worry about it. It seems our son has grown up and wants to be able to support himself and his mate," Inutaisho said. "You know, Inuyasha. All this time your mother and I have been here we haven't really gotten to know this area. We've walked around here but I'm sure you could tell us much more about it. I hear this forest is even named after you. How did that happen?"

For the next half an hour, the group of four walked through the forest as Inuyasha told his parents and even Kagome who hadn't heard some of his story about how he came to this part of Japan. He mentioned about learning about the Shikon no Tama and meeting Kikyo. He mentioned how he grew close to Kikyo and he made sure to stress that even though he thought he loved Kikyo it was only a deep friendship and a bond through loneliness. Kagome was glad to hear this. Inuyasha then mentioned about him getting pinned to the tree and it was because of this that the forest was named after him. When his story was coming to a close, Inuyasha noticed he was near a familiar spot.

"That was a wonderful story, Inuyasha," Izayoi said to him. "I'm glad to see you've grown and not just physically."

"Thank you mom," Inuyasha said. He knew he had sensed something amiss and he decided now was the time to find out what. "There's something wrong with you two. I don't know what you're keeping from me but I want to know what it is."

"Well I'm not going to tell you," Inutaisho said. Inuyasha started to get a little mad but his father continued talking, "you'll have to find out for yourself," and with that he pointed forwarded.

Kagome was unsure what to make of the current events. She just looked to Inuyasha who looked back at her with confusion but also courage. She was sure that whatever was beyond them, they would face together. They grabbed each other's hand and walked forward.

What awaited them was a sight they would have never expected. "Oh my god," Kagome said in surprise.

[Wouldn't I be really evil if I stopped here. Do you think I should? ducks from the oncoming tomatoes I guess not]

They were at the same place that Inuyasha had proposed to Kagome. It still had the beautiful waterfall and the nice hot spring but there was also something new. Right next to the hot spring was a huge house. Kagome didn't know whether it would be considered a house or a mansion, either way it was huge.

"You did this?" Kagome stuttered out.

"Well talk about that later. Just wait until you see the inside," Izayoi said. She and her husband led the two shocked newlyweds to their brand new house. They stopped at the door and waited. "Well it's your house so you're the one that has to open the door."

Inuyasha reached out and grabbed a hold of the door and pulled it open. "CONGRATULATIONS!!" shouted many people at once. Inuyasha and Kagome looked at all the people inside. Miroku and Sango were there with their families as well. Shippo and his parents were there. Even Kaede was there.

"I don't believer this," Kagome said. "You all did this?"

"Yeah," Sango told her friend. "Inuyasha's parents thought up the idea shortly after you two told us you were engaged. We all got together and helped build this."

"You didn't have to," Kagome said.

"Actually it was Sango and Miroku that didn't have to help," Sango's father this. He then spoke to both Inuyasha and Kagome. "This is our way of thanking you for what you have done. You guys worked so hard to finish the Shikon Jewel and then used it to bring back us. We owe you a big debt of gratitude that we hope this can start to repay."

"Inuyasha is the one that deserves your thanks. He was the one that made the wish," Kagome said.

"Yes that is true," Miroku's father said and looked at Inuyasha. "We owe you for giving up your opportunity to become a full demon so as to help us. In the end though, all of you are to thank. Inuyasha made the wish but all of you made the jewel whole again. Without that, there would have been no wish."

"You know I don't say this very much but thank you all," Inuyasha said. Everyone looked at him a little surprised except Kagome who had been the one to open up his good side. "Quit staring or I'll take it back!" Inuyasha yelled at them. They all laughed in return. Inuyasha then turned to Kaede, "Don't tell me you actually worked on this? If you did I'm surprised you lived through it."

"No, I didn't," Kaede admitted. "They invited me to come and congratulate you. The rest of the village did donate some of the materials for the house."

"Thank you, Kaede," Kagome said.

A loud cough got everyone attention. It was Inutaisho. "Now that everyone has had a chance to talk, I believe it is time to continue the festivities with a feast."

"I don't believe this. You guys actually planned a feast for us," Kagome asked.

"Well we felt it was a worthy occasion and it would be a nice welcoming to your new home," Izayoi said.

"Thank you all," Kagome said as she took her turn showing her appreciation for what they had done. All of them got together in the great hall to then celebrate Inuyasha and Kagome's joining.

**_#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well this will end Kagome and IY's peaceful times. Technically their peaceful times will last for about 5 years but since the next chapter jumps 5 years that is why I state that the peace will end. Now I move into the Sess/Kagura relationship which IY and Kagome will definitely play a part. As I mentioned to a reviewer before, we will need conflict and for that we need a new villain. Who could this villain be? Find out in the next chapter. Now 2 things I want to mention:

**Did anyone see the plot consistency error in this chapter? Something is said in this chapter that conflicts with a previous one. Anyone know it?**

Secondly, last chapter I mentioned that I would go into the demon mating ritual since it gave me an idea for another story (not a sequel just another story). I wanted to get your feedback on what you think about it. I'm not guaranteeing to write it but its an idea I'm throwing out there (I HAVEN'T SEEN THIS IDEA BEFORE SO DON'T ANYONE STEAL IT!!!)

**In many stories, when IY and Kagome mate through demon ways their souls are tied together for all of their future lives. What would happen if in a future life they didn't get back together? Would it have any adverse effect on their souls? What would happen if one of the two would try to mate with some else in a different life? How would it effect the other?**

This is another story idea that came to me. I would really like to write this story but with all the other ones in my head I'm a little afraid to start this one. Even if I would write that one, it wouldn't be nearly as long as this one has been. Anyway though, join me next time for:

**Chapter 50: A New Evil Comes Knocking**


	51. Chapter 50 A New Evil Comes Knocking

Sorry about taking so long to update. Things have been hecitc with work. I luckily did get time to go to Otakon. I only went for Friday but it was my first anime convention and it was great. The only thing that sucked was that I went to the Robotech panel (which is what I was really looking forward to) and they raffled off a cool collector's toy piece. I didn't win it and to make matters worse, my older brother who doesn't like anime too much was the one who did win it. Anyway on with the show. I'm not going to do responses this chapter since I'm in a bit of a hurry. I need sleep and I have to drive to work tomorrow.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 50: A New Evil Comes Knocking

Sesshomaru looked up at his father. He had a hard time believing it. He had fought a long hard battle against his father only to find himself staring up at his father's sword from the ground. "It seems I have lost," Sesshomaru said.

"For now you have, but you are welcome to try again in one year," Inutaisho said as he helped his son up. "You have progress so much. If you had fought me with this skill the night I had died, you would have beaten me. I look forward to you challenging me again."

"I expect next year will be the last time I shall challenge you," Sesshomaru said.

"I will await you," his father responded.

Izayoi soon came over and joined the father and son. She had watched the battle from a safe distance. "I should warn you, I have a bad feeling about things. I just know something bad is at work."

"I feel you may be right. Be on your guard, son," Inutaisho said.

"I am capable of taking care of myself," Sesshomaru replied.

"I am aware that you can take care of yourself but that doesn't mean you can do everything yourself. I have a feeling you will learn this soon enough but I will not be there to help you." Sesshomaru looked at his father in disbelief. His face had remained stoic but Inutaisho knew what his son was thinking. "I am not going to die. I just want to tell you that if you need help I will not give it. I believe that it would be best if you would go to your brother."

"Why would I go to him for help?" Sesshomaru questioned. "Besides that would reflect on me as being weak which I am not."

"There are some things that Inuyasha has knowledge in that you do not. Through his voyage to piece together the Shikon Jewel, Inuyasha gained much knowledge and experience," Inutaisho replied. "Besides you are not weak by relying on another, especially a family member. Let me tell you a story son. Long ago, I had a person that I hated about as much as you do Inuyasha. He was not a family member. Takeo was an older youkai lord that refused to acknowledge me as more powerful than he. He would not fight me in an open battle to prove it either. It was because of this that I would have nothing to do with him. We hated each other for hundreds of years. Then Hyouga came to Japan. I have told you of him many times. He was a fierce demon that lead many humans and demons alike to try and take over Japan. I fought with my armies but I was defeated on many occasions. Then to my surprise, one day a messenger from Takeo showed up saying that his lord requested a meeting with me. I went and found that Takeo sought an alliance between our armies to fight Hyouga. After much deliberation, I agreed to the alliance. I fought along side Takeo in that war and because of our alliance we were able to defeat Hyouga."

"So you are saying that with Inuyasha's help, I might defeat this new evil," Sesshomaru replied.

"That is part of what I'm trying to say but there is more to the story. After the war was over, Takeo and I remained on good terms. Our anger for each other had passed. He recognized me as a valiant warrior and where I had thought him a washed up old man, I knew he was a wise and skilled fighter. It was almost fifty years later though that our peace was put to the test. I asked Takeo for his daughter's hand in marriage. I feared that all the peace that had been before would be gone but I was willing to risk it. It surprised me when Takeo welcomed me as part of his family. He passed away not long after we were married. It is a shame. You see his daughter was your mother. It is a shame that he never got to see you. You take after him so much. You are about as stubborn as he was."

Sesshomaru was surprised at this piece of news. His father rarely talked about his mother let alone her family. He let this knew information sink in before deciding to speak. "Thank you, father for this information. I will consider your advice. Now if you will excuse me I must be going."

"Are you still staying at the castle in Kyoto?" Inutaisho asked.

"Yes, I am," Sesshomaru said. Over the years, Sesshomaru realized he needed a place to at least call home at some point. It also wasn't good for Rin to be constantly traveling. Before his father had returned, all the castles his father once owned had been his. Since his father returned, the castles where his once again but his father allowed him to have the one in Kyoto which is where he now resided.

"We will have to come visit you sometime," Izayoi said. "Just be careful in the meantime." Sesshomaru just nodded and walked off.

#####

Kagome laid back in the small hammock that was in front of her house. For the last five years, she and her husband had enjoyed a simple happy life. To be perfectly honest, she wasn't sure how well Inuyasha would adapt to this life. During their travels, he had always been restless and itching for a fight. She wasn't sure how well he could handle the quiet life. As she looked down and saw the arm around her waist and could feel Inuyasha sleeping quietly while huddled up against her, she knew. He was content as long as she was around. A few times, she had snuck away back to the village to visit Kaede or even Shippo and when she returned she usually found Inuyasha a bit of a nervous wreck. He was still as over protective of her as always. He would grant her the freedom to go where she wanted but he still worried. She found it slightly annoying but she had fallen in love with Inuyasha for all his qualities – good and bad.

She was stirred out of her thoughts as she could feel his chest rumble against her back. She looked back and he was growling even though he was just starting to wake up. As soon as he was fully awake he got off the hammock and stood in front of Kagome. "What's up, Inuyasha?"

"Go inside, quickly. Get the swords," he told her.

"_This must be bad_," Kagome thought. "_Inuyasha has barely touched Tetsusaiga these last 5 years and I know I have touched mine. If he wants them so bad, something must be wrong._" Kagome slowly made her way off the hammock. She didn't know if it was good to make and sudden movements. "What do you smell?"

"I don't know why," Inuyasha said. "But I smell Naraku!"

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Sorry for the long chapter but I wanted to give you guys and gals something since you've been waiting. I also wanted to end on the cliffhanger. The other reason chapters are taking a bit longer is because not everything has been totally thought out for this saga. It will be a short one but at this point I don't know how short. Probably only 7-10 chapters. Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 51: Naraku's Contingency Plans**


	52. Chapter 51 Naraku’s Contingency Plans

I know I'm probably going to catch hell for taking so long with this chapter and this chapter not being my biggest either. I don't have any big excuse for this. I can say that college has gotten a lot tougher than I had expected. It seems that being at a branch campus of Penn State spoiled me a little bit. Being at the Main Campus is a lot tougher. The main reason I haven't written more to this story lately was because I am almost not interested in it. Now before I catch hell for that statement, its not because of lack of readers or reviewers. You guys mean the most to me and to be honest, if you guys weren't still out there this story probably would've died already. I think I suffered a bit of a burnout though. Let me explain:

A Wish from the Heart may be the only ongoing fan fic on and the only one I'm really working on now but unfortunately my imagination does not wait for me to write. At this point, I have the rest of Wish from the Heart, an entire trilogy based on Grandia 2, and a storyline that could encompass 50 chapters (and I'm talking 10-20 pages per chapters) from my very first fanfic/lemon. That's only FAN-FICS. If we go into what I have in original fiction, I have a vampire story (thought out in grave detail), a sci-fi/parallel world trilogy (thought out in great detail), and an assassin trilogy (this one isn't in great detail, in fact the 3 stories mirror each other). Not to mention in the back of my head I feel that if I think enough I'll end up with some sort of demon story as well. All of this has taken its toll on me. At some point, I got tired of writing stories, then I even got tired of thinking about them. Now I've given myself time to relax and not think about the stories. I can not guarantee that my overload has subsided but I can assure you that this story will get completed. I would even like to finish this story before it becomes a year old (for those of you who haven't been here from the beginning that means I have until Thanksgiving). Even while finishing up this chapter, I got a new idea to toss in here. Now this won't make the story any larger but it just adds to the drama and such.

Well I hate to keep you waiting any longer. Ohh and by the way, I still don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 51: Naraku's Contingency Plans

Kagome slowly made her way off the hammock. She didn't know if it was good to make and sudden movements. "What do you smell?"

"I don't know why," Inuyasha said. "But I smell Naraku!"

"Naraku!? But we defeated him over 5 years ago. Are you sure?" Kagome asked.

"I know we defeated him. The main scent is the same but there's an underlying one," Inuyasha said. "I've only smell that before from his detachments."

"So is it Kagura or did Naraku leave behind other detachments?" Kagome asked.

"It has to be another detachment. The underlying scent is what makes them unique. If it was Kagura, I'd know," Inuyasha said. He then turned to Kagome, "Go get Tetsusaiga now!"

Kagome turned to leave but a chilling voice called out, "I wouldn't do that if I was you. You humans are so easy to kill," the voice seemed to be coming from all around them so Inuyasha couldn't pin down his location. "Go ahead and make a run for it. I'll cut you up before you even get close to your cabin."

"Come out you bastard!" Inuyasha yelled.

"Why should I? I like keeping you in suspense like this," he responded.

"Really well I'm not afraid of you," Kagome said out loud. Inuyasha was surprised by her comments. Kagome turned and looked at him. "I'm going to get our swords," she said firmly before starting to walk towards their house. Kagome hadn't even gotten halfway when a figure jumped out of the surrounding trees at her.

The figure advanced at her quicker than Inuyasha could reach her. When she turned to look at him, he saw a firm resolve look in her face rather than one of terror that he had expected. Another unexpected turn was when he found himself smashing against a force field. "_Damnit, I forgot this bitch is a miko and can put up a barrier,_" he thought to himself. He found a final surprise when he tried to jump back away from the barrier. He couldn't.

"Did you think I'm that weak? I've learned quite a bit since we killed your precious creator," Kagome told him. She turned to see Inuyasha reaching her. "You wanna get the sword while I hold him."

Inuyasha just nodded. He had been surprised to see Kagome acting so haughty against their new enemy. He had definitely been rubbing off on his mate. Inuyasha returned quickly with Tetsusaiga.

"Now tell me something," Kagome asked their new intruder, "it has been over 5 years since your maker's demise, so why come after us now?"

"You think this is necessarily over him? HA," the demon laughed. "I really don't care much about that fool. I am glad that you killed that pompous ass."

"Then why did you come after us?" Inuyasha asked.

"Because if you're a threat to him you could be a threat to me," the demon said coldly. "There was also this thing that he had wanted me to kill everyone responsible for his death if that ever came but I didn't care about that."

"Well I hate to disappoint you," Inuyasha said. "But I've been through a bit since we killed Naraku and I'm even stronger. Besides, all you detachments are always weaker than he was."

"Is that what you think?" he asked rhetorically. Then all of a sudden he opened his mouth and out came spewing miasma. Kagome instantly brought her hand over her mouth and in her lapse let go of the barrier allowing the prisoner to escape. "I'm a lot tougher than you think," he said as he cackled evilly.

"Well see about that," Inuyasha said as he raised up his sword.

"I think my time here is about up," the voice called out from the forest again. I'll come back to you when I'm finished with the others." With that he disappeared. Inuyasha rushed out into the forest but couldn't seem to pick up a scent anymore.

"Damnit he's gone," Inuyasha said.

"I can't seem to sense him either," Kagome said. "I think you underestimated him a bit. He may be more challenging then you thought."

"Well he's gone for now but I don't like what he said," Inuyasha stated.

"Do you think he was talking about Sango and Miroku?" Kagome asked her mate.

"I don't know for sure but it wouldn't hurt to make sure. I don't think they're in any shape to fight back," Inuyasha said. "It will take us at least a day and a half to reach them. Just be glad that it will take him just as long."

#####

Miroku sat at the heart of the demon slayer village. He was worried about Sango. She was late. Just as he was about to get up to go check on her and hand was laid on his shoulder.

"Do not be so hasty," Midoriko warned. "You do remember what happened last time." Miroku remembered clearly. Sango had gotten really angry at him and didn't talk with him for almost a week. "I understand that since she is your wife now, you are protective of her but do not forget the strength that she has."

"How could I forget, it was one of the parts of her that I love," Miroku replied.

"Then trust her to be able to protect herself. It is simple guard duty and Kohaku is with her…"

"You're right. I don't know what comes over me at times," Miroku said as he had not noticed the change in Midoriko.

"We've got to get to them as quickly as possible," Midoriko said in great urgency.

"But I thought," Miroku said as he turned to Midoriko.

"Forget it! I sense a great evil approaching. I do not think they will be able to handle it," Midoriko said.

"Do you know where they are at this moment?" Miroku said. Since Sango had guard duty they could be anywhere around the village.

"They are at the far end, near my cave. I can only hope we arrive in time," Midoriko said as the both rushed off.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Like I said I know its short but that's what I've come up with so far. I hope to have the next chapter soon. Well I figure I might as well make one sort of recommendation. I haven't done one in a while plus its one of the few stories I've read in the past month (I practically gave up reading as well as writing):

**Another Name But My Heart** by **_Lady of the Ink_**

I may have recommended it before but oh well. Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 52: A Day Late and a Person Short**


	53. Chapter 52 A Day Late and a Person Short

Okay, I've updated once again. This chapter is definitely longer than the last one. I guess I should inform you guys on some things.

First off, by my reasoning this fic should be 9 more chapters (including this one) and then followed by a 2 part epilogue. That's what's planned now but who knows my plans always end up changing.

Secondly, after this fic I think I'll be doing a one-shot story that's in my head. It will be quite big though, probably equal to about 5 chapters of this story, possibly.

Third, after that I think I'm gonna start on another chaptered fic. Once again being IY but this time an AU. It will be drama/Romance. Even though A Wish from the Heart is listed as Drama/romance it still contained action/adventure. This new fic, tentatively titled Mates are Forever (tentative!) will be a strict Drama/Romance. As it is now, there will no Action/Adv in it at all.

Fourth, depending on when I get to those later things, fanfics will start to go on the back burner. Come my spring semester I plan to take an Intro to Fiction writing course, which will probably eat up most of my writing. Now some of you may be wondering why I'd take that course if I'm already writing here. 1st remember I'm actually a Computer Engineering major, writing is my hobby. 2nd, as mentioned in the past I have quite a few original fiction ideas that I would like to write and hopefully one day publish. I figure the Fiction writing course would help in this aspect.

Now enjoy the story and remember I don't own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 52: A Day Late and a Person Short

Inuyasha and Kagome rushed as fast as Inuyasha's feet would carry them. Kagome was filled with enjoyment yet that was overshadowed by worry. She had not ridden on Inuyasha's back since their journey with their companions and it felt good again. Yet she did not have time to dwell on this too much as she worried for friends. She and Inuyasha had set out right away. Inuyasha had not stopped since they started yet Kagome had been able to get a little bit of sleep on Inuyasha's back, though it was not very restful. She prayed that they got there in time.

"Inuyasha, about how much longer do you think until we make it there?" Kagome asked.

"Well I can pour on a little more speed and I think we'll be there in five minutes," Inuyasha said.

Kagome was shocked that they were that close. "Do what speed you can; I know you're already getting tired."

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Inuyasha said. He knew he was tired for the running but he worried for his friends too. Inuyasha was also happy that Kagome was worried about him as well, even though he didn't believe he needed it. "Hold on, tighter," Inuyasha warned as he increased his speed.

Before Kagome knew it they were at the gates of the Demon Exterminator's village. "Do you have a death wish, demons?" one of the guards asked.

"Do I look like a demon to you?" Kagome shouted as she got off Inuyasha.

"Forgive me, miss. We shall free you from this demon," the other guard said.

Just before Inuyasha could think of responding with either words or fists he was cut short. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," another voice said as the gate slowly opened. The guards turned towards the gates. "Attempting to separate a demon and his mate could cost you, especially this one."

"Well at least you give us a better reception," Inuyasha replied.

"Inuyasha, forgive Takai and Kage, they are new here and only know you by reputation and not by face," Midoriko replied.

"You mean… he is thee Inuyasha," Takai said.

"Forgive us, you are most welcome here and we will not forget your face again," Kage continued.

Inuyasha only replied with his usual 'Feh' as he and Kagome walked into the village.

"It might also help if you visited a little more often," Midoriko said.

"Well this isn't exactly a social visit," Inuyasha said.

Kagome waited for him continue but he didn't. She decided to talk then, "We came here to warn you, there…" Inuyasha hand in front of her face stopped her. She looked at Inuyasha totally surprised. "We have to warn them!"

"Its too late," Inuyasha said.

"So that is why you came," Midoriko said.

"Yes, though I can smell that we are already too late. How long ago?" Inuyasha questioned.

"Yesterday, just as afternoon became evening," Midoriko said.

"Are you sure?" Inuyasha asked as his voice rose.

"Yes, I am sure. Why are you so troubled?" Midoriko asked.

"The stench of Naraku that is here belongs to the same person that showed up at our place yesterday around noon," Inuyasha said.

"But how did he get here so fast?" Kagome asked.

"I do not know," Midoriko said.

"Has anyone been hurt? Is Sango and Miroku okay?" Kagome asked.

"I should start from the beginning," Midoriko said.

#######

Sango and Kohaku sat on a rock near Midoriko's Cave. Their shift of guard duty was coming to an end soon and they were taking a break. Technically it had been Sango and Miroku's shift but Miroku had been so over-protective of him recently that she forced him to switch with Kohaku.

"Have you been okay, Kohaku? Lately your mind seems to be elsewhere," Sango asked her younger brother.

"Well its just I've been having nightmare's lately. It's my memories of what I did when Naraku had control of me," Kohaku came out and said.

Sango knew this was a touchy subject with her brother. Even when he was revived he had retained the memories of what he had done. It took him about the first year to get over the memories but he had conquered them. If they were now bothering his sleep, she feared that he'd have to go through that again. "I don't know what I can really say to help you Kohaku. In the end this is a battle within you and only you can decide the outcome. You have to realize that you were not responsible for what happened."

"I know that. It's just still a little hard," Kohaku said.

"Just remember, that everyone is here for you," Sango said.

"Thanks," he told her. "There's one other thing I wanted to talk to you about…"

"What is it?" Sango asked. From the look on her brother's face it was another serious issue.

"I know that father and everyone has been saying I'm getting a lot better as an exterminator, but I've been thinking," he said slowly. "I don't think I'm cut out to be a slayer."

"You're just pressuring yourself too much. I think you're just being too harsh on yourself."

"It's not that. I just really don't think I want to be a slayer. I'm just not comfortable with all the killing."

Sango looked closely at her brother. She could tell he had definitely given this issue much thought before telling her. "You know, I think part of me always knew you weren't cut out for this. Have you talked this over with father?"

"Not yet. I know how it's been a tradition in the village that those that grow up become slayers like their family before them. I'm afraid I'm letting him down. Especially since you're the girl in the family and following after him while I'm not."

"Hey!" Sango yelled but they both shared a good laugh. "I don't think father will be too mad. In the end, I think he just wants what's best for us. There also comes a time when we have to make our own decisions in life. You choose to live your life the way you want, no one can tell you different. I just want you to know that I will always be there for you."

"Thanks sis," Kohaku said as they exchanged a hug.

"Isn't this sweet," a dark voice came. "I'm tired of listen to your brother-sister talk."

"Who are you?" Sango yelled out. She was worried. She hadn't sensed his approach. Either she had been careless while talking with Kohaku or he could hide from her senses. She hoped it was only the former. Their opponent before them was a demon of short height. He was only about 5'2'' or 5'3''. He had black hair that came down to about his shoulders but no further.

"It doesn't matter who I am. All that matters is that I get what I came for," he said.

"And what is that?" she asked.

"Your life," he said as he came charging at her.

Kohaku stepped in front of Sango to try and protect her. He swung his weapon at their assailant only to have him knock it to the side with his arm. He then hit Kohaku in the stomach and a few hits to the face before knocking him about 15-20 feet away. Sango swung her sword at their attacker only to have him jump away. She cursed herself for leaving Hiraikotsu back at the village.

He then made a cloud of miasma around himself and was quickly lost in it. Sango stared closely in front of her waiting for him to reappear. She had not noticed that he had in fact slipped behind her and was charged at her from behind. She heard a small noise behind her and realized where he was. She knew that she wouldn't be able to turn in time but did so anyway. At the last second, he jumped away which left Sango confused but watched as a staff dig into the ground where he would have been if he had continued.

Midoriko and Miroku weren't far behind his staff. He just had to keep the demon from attacking Sango. He wished the demon hadn't seen it, it would have impaled him. "Who are you?" Miroku asked.

The demon didn't answer. "Another detachment of Naraku," Midoriko said.

"Are you sure?" Sango asked.

"I can sense Naraku's aura around him," she said.

"I see I have some more worthy opponents," he said. "Well I think I've worn out my welcome but I think I'll take a parting gift." It was only then that they noticed that he was near the unconscious body of Kohaku.

"I won't let you take him," Sango yelled as charged at him. She hadn't gone far before he created some more miasma around himself. Sango was about to continue to charge into it when Miroku stopped her.

"That stuff is poison," Miroku warned her. Midoriko wasted no time in using her powers to clear away the miasma. Unfortunately when it was gone so was their foe and Kohaku.

#######

"That's the same guy that attacked us, alright," Inuyasha said.

"What I don't get is why he attacks so suddenly and then leaves right away," Kagome said. "His battle with us wasn't that long either. We didn't really do anything to him before he fled."

"He was testing you," Midoriko said. "He wanted to gauge your strength and if he could catch you off guard enough, like in the case with Sango, he would kill you. Luckily we got there in time to save her."

"Then why take Kohaku?" Inuyasha asked.

"Probably since he was right there and to make Sango suffer."

"So how is Sango taking this?" Kagome asked worried about her friend.

"She's broken up over it. She blames herself for not being able to do anything," Midoriko told her.

"I'll go check on her," Kagome said but before she could go anywhere Sango's voice caught her attention.

"I'm going and you can't stop me!" Sango yelled as she threw open the door to the house.

Miroku was right behind her trying to stop her. "You can't go. You need to stay calm."

Before Sango could yell at her, Inuyasha decide to butt in. "You're not going anywhere Sango. We'll take care of this."

"Inuyasha, what are you doing here?" Sango asked surprised to see him.

"We were attacked as well and was hoping to get here in time to warn you but he beat us here," Kagome told her friend.

"Will you tell Inuyasha to leave him alone and let me go?" Sango asked her friend.

"I'm with Inuyasha on this. You can't do this in your condition," Kagome said.

This was the one thing Sango had been afraid of – everyone wouldn't let her fight just because she was pregnant. She was about to continue to fight back against them for her right to fight when Midoriko placed her hand on her shoulder. She didn't know what it was but Sango felt herself calm down. "You have to understand they are thinking about what's best for you – both of you," Midoriko said. "Trust them."

"Don't worry about Kohaku," Miroku said. "I'll go with Inuyasha and we'll get him back."

"I'm gonna have to say no to that as well," Inuyasha said. "You'd be better here. If this detachment comes back here, you're going to be needed. Not to mention Sango's going to need your emotional support as well as physical."

Miroku knew that what Inuyasha said rang true. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say your growing up," he told his friend.

"Shut up, monk," Inuyasha yelled at him. Kagome just smiled. It reminded her of old times.

"So what will you do now?" he asked them.

"I don't know yet but we'll get Kohaku back."

**_#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well I hope you guys like it. I can't really provide many fanfic recommendations since I've stopped reading for quite a while. I'm looking to start reading again so maybe some recommends in the future. I can recommend one thing. Watch:

Detective Conan Movie 6: Phantom of Baker Street

I'm a big fan of whodunit mysteries and also a fan of Sherlock Holmes. I really liked this movie. To anyone who enjoys the same things, check it out. But be sure to come back for:

**Chapter 53: The Third Attack**


	54. Chapter 53 The Third Attack

Well everyone it seems I have once again suffered from a long hiatus. I deeply apologize for that. There are things I can blame such as school, finals, horrible teachers, work but that wouldn't be totally fair. I'd also have to blame myself for playing too much FFXI (though I've stopped now), being lazy, and the ever missing desire to continue to write. I always enjoy thinking up the stories but don't always have the drive to write them. I can promise everyone that this story will be finished. So don't ever think it won't be.

**Special Thanks: Thanks goes out to everyone who has continued to review even though my updating has been very horrible. Also special thanks must also go to a girl named Rachel. She went beyond normal feedback. She got my email and emailed me directly saying that she wouldn't read my story if she knew it won't be completed. I can totally agree with her. I've started reading too many stories to have them just die in the middle. It was soon after reading her email last night that I started thinking more about this next chapter. All the writing was done in one day, that's thanks to the fact that work is boring from everyone being out between Christmas and New Years. This chapter is dedicated to all my reviewers.**

**Also Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.**

Disclaimer: I wanted IY for Christmas but Santa wasn't that nice. I did get an IY wall scroll though.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 53: The Third Attack

Inuyasha and Kagome stuck around at t he slayer village for the night. It had taken a while to calm Sango down and by then Miroku and the others had insisted that they stay to night and get a fresh start in the morning. Midoriko helped Miroku get Sango to her room and returned to find Inuyasha and Kagome still awake.

"Do you not plan to get any sleep?" she asked them.

"Not until you tell us everything," Inuyasha told her. "I know you're holding something back. What is it that you didn't want Sango or Miroku to know?"

"It is not that I didn't want them to know but I felt it would only worry them more. I do not know anything personally about your new enemy yet even in the small bit of time I had confronted him I knew something was wrong. There is something weird with the power he possesses. It is something I have not seen before. It is as if something is missing. I don't know how if that is the reason he is after you but be careful. I fear that this demon is far more powerful than even Naraku was."

"It doesn't matter, I'm stronger as well," Inuyasha said.

"I know what you have been through but even that may not be enough," Midoriko warned.

"Which way did he go when he left?" Inuyasha asked.

"He is very good at hiding his power and scent but I could sense a trace going West when he left," Midoriko told the hanyou. "But you can't think of leaving now? You should rest up."

"We can't afford to wait. With how fast this guy moves, tomorrow will be too late," Inuyasha said. "Kagome, let's go."

Inuyasha wasted no time in hoisting Kagome on his back and speeding away. Midoriko could only watch them leave and spoke to no one in particular, "I fear you may already be too late."

Kagome slowly awoke from of slumber. Inuyasha had insisted she try to get some sleep. She had thought it would be really hard with Inuyasha running so fast but he had balanced her well enough that she didn't feel it too much. Once Kagome was totally awake a thought came to her. "Hey Inuyasha, do you have any exact idea as to where this guy is headed?"

"No but if we just keep heading West we should find some trace of him."

"I don't think that will work. If he decided to change his direction at any time we'd lose him. He might not have even gone exactly West and therefore the farther we get from where he is."

"So what would you have me do instead, just stop and wait for him to come by again?" Inuyasha asked though he didn't stop his running.

"No, we need to think as to where he'd be going. Well we know he's after people that were a threat to Naraku. Would he go after Kouga?"

"I highly doubt it. Kouga never was considered a big threat by Naraku and now that he has no jewel shards he's even less of a threat. Besides Kouga and his clan live in the Northeast."

"Well who do you know of that lives in the West was a threat to Naraku?"

Inuyasha was stumped by that. He barely knew anyone in the west. His parents lived in the west but he highly doubted this detachment knew about them let alone decide to try to take on his father. The only other person he knew in the west was… "Shit," Inuyasha practically shouted out loud.

"What's wrong?" Kagome asked sounding worried.

"I think I know who he's after but I don't think I want to help," Inuyasha grumbled.

From his disposition, Kagome realized who he was referring to. "Inuyasha, we have a common enemy so I think we should just worry about that and not how much you hate Sesshomaru. Besides, we both know that things will get better in the future between you two. So I think it would be best if you just swallow your pride and try to get along with your brother long enough."

"He's the one with the superiority complex not me," Inuyasha said.

"Do you think we should maybe get some help from the others in the future?" Kagome asked trying to change the subject.

"I don't think that'd be good," Inuyasha replied. "First off, only you and I have been able to pass through the well so I don't think Tai or any of the others could. Second, we shouldn't involve anyone in this fight that does need to be in it. This is our fight."

"You know I think Miroku is right," Kagome added. "You are starting to sound more mature." Inuyasha's just grunted and continued on rather than arguing back.

Kagome and Inuyasha were stunned when they finally reached Sesshomaru's nearest castle, which he had been staying at. Many of the walls surrounding the castles had been breached. The castle itself had even more damage. Walls were knocked out. Some seemed that they had been on fire but burned themselves out before having a chance to spread. Even the scent of death hung in the air.

"I can't believe this," Kagome said. "There's no way your brother had this much trouble."

"He didn't," Inuyasha replied.

"Then why so much damage?" Kagome asked.

"Because Sesshomaru wasn't here. His scent is stale," Inuyasha said as he started to move through the rubble.

"The demon must have been angry that he missed Sesshomaru and decided to ruin the castle," Kagome inferred.

"Yes and no," Inuyasha said. "Sesshomaru wasn't here but there were people here."

"Do you mean Jaken and Rin?" Kagome asked remembering the little girl. She was worried for her but didn't really care about Jaken.

"They were here when he came. Rin's scent is gone and as for Jaken," Inuyasha said as he picked up a large fragment of the castle wall and tossed it away. There laid a dead Jaken among more pieces of the castle.

"I can't same I'm deeply sorry," Kagome admitted. "I never did like the guy but part of me feels bad none the less."

"Don't worry about it," Inuyasha said.

"How can you say that? I know you didn't like him much either but still," Kagome said.

"I don't really care because I know this really doesn't mean nothing. Sesshomaru will probably take care of the stupid toad, right?" Inuyasha asked as he turned around. There stood the Lord of the Western Lands, Sesshomaru. A person might have thought that for a second he showed a bit of surprise on his face when looking at his ruined home.

"While my home being wrecked is an interesting turn of events, why am I not surprised to find you in the middle of it all?" Sesshomaru asked.

"And why am I surprised that you think I'm responsible?" Inuyasha replied with a question.

"Why is that you once again misinterpret what I say?" Sesshomaru

"So are you saying that you don't think I'm responsible?"

"Will you two stop with the 20 questions!" Kagome yelled. "If this is some macho contest, do it some other time."

"It is not my fault that my half brother thinks that I am accusing him of causing damage to my home. I merely said that I was not surprised to find him within the mess."

Inuyasha was about to defend himself but Kagome stepped up and stopped him. "Are you going to revive your servant or not?" Kagome asked.

"I will when you get out of my way," Sesshomaru told them. Kagome quickly moved out of the way and since Inuyasha seemed to not be moving as quickly she just dragged him with her. She then watched as Sesshomaru removed Tensaiga from its sheath and strike at some invisible enemies. Next thing she knew Jaken was waking up as if he had only been asleep.

"Lord Sesshomaru, ohh how good it is to see you," Jaken said. "I am sorry I have failed you. I failed to protect your castle while you were away."

Jaken would have continued on if Sesshomaru had not decided to end his groveling. "Who did this?"

"A detachment of Naraku," Inuyasha butted in.

"What are you doing here?" Jaken asked as he finally took notice to Inuyasha and Kagome. "Allow me to do with them, my liege." Jaken picked up his staff and pointed it at Inuyasha.

"You will do no such thing, at least at this point," Sesshomaru said. "Explain yourself, Inuyasha."

"Why should I?" Inuyasha asked but as he turned he saw Kagome glaring at him. "Fine. There's some new detachment of Naraku around that has been in hiding since we defeated Naraku. It seems that he believes who ever was a threat to Naraku is a threat to him. So far he's only really come to gauge our strength but he has managed to kidnap Sango's brother, Kohaku and now it appears he has Rin as well."

"Well we should get going after him," Kagome said.

"Can't," Inuyasha said. "His scent is so old that I can barely tell he was here at all."

"How much did we miss him by?"

"Judging by the scent of death around toad man here," Inuyasha said motion to Jaken, "I'd say a little over 2 days."

"So you saying he got here the night of when he attacked Sango, which in the morning he attacked us. How the hell does he travel so fast? Even you aren't half as fast as he seems to be."

"He must be able to teleport," Inuyasha surmised.

"Wrong," Sesshomaru added. "Such a long distance is not possible by mere teleportation."

"Then how did he get here so fast. I've never even heard of a demon that fast before," Inuyasha replied.

"That is the question you are trying to figure out. In the meantime, I must go find him. Rin has been in my care and I must see to it that she is not harmed."

"Do you know where Naraku's detachment is at?" Kagome asked.

"No I do not but I will not wait around here for him to return," Sesshomaru said.

"Then join us. I'm sure there's some way that we'll be able to track him down," Kagome offered.

Sesshomaru was about to reject her suggestion but then remembered his conversation with his father previously.

"I have a feeling you will learn this soon enough but I will not be there to help you," Inutaisho said. "I am not going to die. I just want to tell you that if you need help I will not give it. I believe that it would be best if you would go to your brother."

"Why would I go to him for help?" Sesshomaru questioned. "Besides that would reflect on me as being weak which I am not."

"There are some things that Inuyasha has knowledge in that you do not. Through his voyage to piece together the Shikon Jewel, Inuyasha gained much knowledge and experience," Inutaisho replied. "Besides you are not weak by relying on another, especially a family member."

"As long as you do no question my reasons, I will join you," Sesshomaru said.

"My lord, are you serious?" Jaken answered. Sesshomaru turned and looked at him. "I'm sorry, I should not have doubted your decision, please forgive me. What would you have me do?"

"You are to see to castle repairs while I am gone. I expect everything to be fixed for when I get back."

"That still leaves out how exactly we're going to find this guy," Inuyasha said. "Maybe we should take you advice from before and go see a certain someone if the future. He'd know what occurred and could tell us how to find this guy." Sesshomaru once again was not totally sure of what they spoke but instead kept a silent watch on them and observed.

"Inuyasha, that's it!" Kagome shouted.

"So now we have to run all the way back to the well," Inuyasha groaned.

"No we don't. Our friend from the future already helped us enough. He showed us enough of the past to know what to expect and we even know that we have to give things a little push." Kagome had refused to use Tai's name just incase it could case any sort of problems even though she doubted it would do anything.

"If I am to work with you, it would help if you would explain what you are saying," Sesshomaru said.

"It's confusing I know but what we have to do is seek out Kagura," Inuyasha told his brother.

"And why must we do that?"

"She is the only other remain detachment of Naraku. She will most likely have some sort of connection with our enemy. We'll just need her to point us in the right direction," Kagome said.

"Let's just hope she is willing to help us," Inuyasha added.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well that ends that for this chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed this. If you haven't gotten a chance to check out my one shot I did in between these last two chapters:

**Go the Distance **by _Spider_ (me) s/2111885/1/ -- Just add that after the 

For everyone that has read it here's the answer to my trivia question at the end. If you haven't read the story yet but plan to go back read it then come back here. The title does reference 2 things. The 2nd reference (being the roundabout one) references this story, A Wish From the Heart. Specifically chapter 31. So if you haven't already figured it out the main reference is in fact to the movie Field of Dreams. No one got either. I can't believe no one remembers the movie.

Also for some Christmas/New Years IY reading check out:

**Midnight Kiss **by _Sleepwalking Chicken and HAP _ s/2191852/1/ -- Great story. Its long but you don't even realize it since your wrapped up in the story. Helped me pass time at work. :)

Well join me next time (which hopefully won't be too long off) for:

**Chapter 54: May the Wind Guide You**


	55. Chapter 54 May the Wind Guide You

Yes, I know this is another short chapter but I wanted to get this out to you guys as soon as I could. The next chapter will probably be even shorter. It will be taking a look at Rin and Kohaku and how they are doing in captivity. Also another thing I wanted to point out. Some of you guys and gals, my wonderful readers, might be under the impression that I will totally be delving into the Sesshomaru/ Kagura relationship. This however is untrue. This saga is merely that which shows what set it up. I will not be going into depth about how their relationship goes. I may cover some of it in the prologue. If you would like to see a deep story into the Sess/Kagura relationship check out "Call Me Tomorrow." While being an AU, the characters fit them perfectly. Also at this point I'm sure someone's saying, "Why the hell do you keep recommending that story?" Because its damn good. Its actually the best Sess/Kagura story I have ever read, not just on but the entire internet. I will say that "The Ad" comes in for my second fav featuring Sess/Kagura (but that can't be found on anymore). If anyone has any good Sess/Kagura stories, please let me know I would love to read them.

Disclaimer: None of my other relatives got me Inuyasha. All I got was a shirt from my buddy that says "Anime Freak" (he's an anime fan as well, and the shirt is true), but that doesn't qualify for me to own IY.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 54: May the Wind Guide You

Inuyasha still found it hard to believe. Here he was off on another quest with Kagome. This time not after jewel shards but instead to rescue old friends. Their group from the past was no longer with them. Sango would soon have a child and Inuyasha and his mate would not dare jeopardize the mother or child's health. Miroku was also told to stay behind in case danger would seek them out once again. Neither knew how Shippo was doing since they had last seen him, which had only been a few months ago. The kitsune had come to see them quite often. They had figure that their new enemy did not fear the kit at all. Inuyasha had but it bluntly that he would be useless and while Kagome had hit him for it, she was glad that he was right and Shippo would be in no trouble. Instead their journey had provided them with a new ally, Sesshomaru. Inuyasha was not totally sure why his brother had decided to join them on their expedition but part of him was glad for the help, he'd just never admit it openly.

"So let's get going to see Kagura," Inuyasha said.

"There's one problem, Inuyasha," Kagome added. "We don't know where Kagura is, either. She'll probably be even harder to find."

"Great that puts us back where we started," Inuyasha said. Inuyasha wanted to hit himself. He had been forgetting the lessons his father had taught him about thinking ahead when a battle was coming. The last five years Inuyasha had kept himself in shape physically for battle should the need ever arise but without actual combat he had not kept in shape mentally. That wasn't to say he had forgotten tactics, he just had to remember to actually use his brain once again rather than rely on just instinct.

"You don't ever think anything out do you," Sesshomaru said.

"Yeah, well at least we are thinking of stuff, you're just standing over there trying to look pretty," Inuyasha fired back at his brother.

"Vanity has nothing to do with this," Sesshomaru said. (**I wanted to have him instead say "I don't need to try." but I think that'd be OOC for Sess.)**

"You know what I mean."

"As for Kagura, she can be found in the North," Sesshomaru said. Inuyasha and Kagome just looked at him stunned.

"And how do you know?" Kagome asked after recovering.

"Maybe that's where you were? Having a small getaway with Kagura?" Inuyasha pestered.

"What makes you think I would ever be romantically involved with the Wind Witch?" Sesshomaru asked.

Inuyasha and Kagome tried their hardest to keep a straight face. They knew a little more than Sesshomaru did and didn't want to upset history. "How do you know that Kagura is in the North?" Kagome repeated.

"I find that once a year I should take a trip around my lands to make sure that everything is in order. I also go a little outside to make sure the security of my lands are not being threatened. Many of my trips I have caught Kagura's scent while in the Northern regions. I have even caught a glimpse of her at times."

"So then we should head to the north," Kagome said.

* * *

It took a day and a half for the uneasy group to make it to the boundaries of the northern region. It then took another half a day for them to even catch wind of Kagura. The whole time Sesshomaru had been leading them, a fact which Inuyasha was uncomfortable with. Kagome was able to keep him calm through their trip. 

Inuyasha and Kagome checked their surroundings as they could. They were currently in the Northern Mountains. If they would have time, Kagome would definitely say that the surround area was beautiful, though Kagome seemed to find most of this area gorgeous. They could both see that the very top of the mountain had snow on it which made it look even prettier to Kagome. Luckily though they weren't walking through snow quite yet, they were still making their way up the mountain side though grass and small rivers. That didn't mean it wasn't cold though. They were constantly being hit by the cold north wind. Being with his mate for so long, Inuyasha could practically read Kagome's mind and gave her his fire rat haori before she had said anything.

"You humans are such fragile creatures," Sesshomaru said as he noticed Inuyasha slight display of affection for his mate.

"Yet you're searching to save one," Inuyasha said. Sesshomaru didn't have any quick response to Inuyasha's comment.

"I'm Inuyasha's mate and no matter how fragile I am, I will stick with him," Kagome said. Inuyasha felt himself fill with pride. "Besides, you should try finding a mate some time."

"I have no use for a mate at this time," Sesshomaru said.

"I think you just a little shy," Kagome said.

"Or you're afraid of actually loving someone," Inuyasha added.

"I think you two have forgotten our purpose on this trip," Sesshomaru said changing the subject.

"You're the one that started this conversation," Inuyasha said. He knew that Sesshomaru just wanted to avoid the topic. He decided he didn't want to push it much further either, "So how long until we get to Kagura's place?"

"If you were paying attention, you'd know we're there," Sesshomaru said as he pointed just above them were a small hut stood. Sesshomaru was definitely telling them the truth, Inuyasha could smell Kagura's fresh scent all around the small cottage.

As the group approach the cottage, they looked around and made sure no one else was around. They hoped that their common enemy had not thought about going after Kagura. "So should be just go up and knock?" Inuyasha asked.

"That won't be necessary," Kagura voice called out as she came from behind the cottage. "And what may I ask are you doing here?"

_**&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#**_

Well no long after notes this time around. One small note: I'm quickly hating 's quickedit feature. It keeps taking out certain characters within the chapter causing it to get screwed up.I do have a quick response to a reviewer but this goes to future reviewers as well:

The real Naraku is dead and **(for the last time) KANNA IS DEAD!**

Everyone keeps asking me about when Kanna's going to show up or something like that but if'd you look back at chapter 1 (where I used to rush stuff like crazy), it is mentioned that Kanna was killed in the battle against Naraku. Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 55: Forgotten Memories Recalled**


	56. Chapter 55 Forgotten Memories Recalled

Well I'm sure even one here is surprised. I've updated and its only been 2 days. Amazing isn't it? Well I can say not to expect that for the next chapter. This is for a couple reasons. First I figured this chapter was going to be short so I was quick to get a jump on it. Secondly, yesterday was really boring at work so I whipped most of this up there. Also, next week I starts my spring semester in college so this weekend I'll be moving a lot of my stuff back out to State College with me. Lastly, with the start of a new semester there is the fun transition period of new class times and new professors. Unfortunately this semester I will have an 8 am class MWF. This is going to seriously suck cause I am not a morning person. These sort of adjusments might put off my next chapter but hopefully not by much.

Well this chapter did end up longer than I had expected it to be. I hope you all enjoy it. Now before we start I will do something I haven't done in a while, Review Responses:

**_mydyingsoul14_** - as I mentioned before, when this saga (and practically the whole story) ends Sess/Kagura won't be offically together but they will be headed down that sort of path. I'm not going to sit down and write a long story about how their romance goes. Those 2 characters are very complex and to do that love story is quite complicated. I'm not sure if I'm totally up for the task yet. Not to mention then it really starts to deviate from the heart of this story.

**_Takerus Lost Angel_** - Its good to hear from you again. You know when you first said you hadn't reviewed for a while I would have though around chapter 50. You didn't have to go all the way back and look. Either way it is good to hear from you. I'm not going to yell about anything for not reviewing since I've gotten quite lazy about review myself.

**_LoveHina-UltraManiac_** - Thank you for all your reviews. It really helps. Reading your reviews made me think of my earlier chapters and some of the fluff which I feel like writing again. Unfortunately the characters are right now in a situation where fluff wouldn't make any sense.

**_Tweak the Ears_** - Yes I know I can be evil. I love cliffhangers (when writing, hate when reading). Also I don't know if I've said it before but I like you user name.

**_Dragon Man 180 _** - You know I never thought about Kagura using her wind powers to strengthen the Kaze No Kizu but that does sound like a good idea. I'll think about it but as for now Kagura's role in this story is a little different.

**_Sakume Nohara_** - Its good to hear from you once again. Of all the characters from Inuyasha I don't like Kanna the most (her and Kikyo are practically tied). I don't really know why that is but she just creeps me out. As for this story being as long as it is. I remember when I started this I expected it to be only 15 chapters long, if that. The story will be approximately 10 more chapters including the epilogue.

**_Maroon Goddess_** - You say don't let IY and Kag have kids. Well they are truly in love and I believe that they will have kids in time. Only that will not be covered in this story. The only time that will be mentioned is in the epilogue.

**_KawaiiInuYashaLover - _**Yes I know I could use a beta reader. Unfortunately this story is far too long for me to ask anyone to do that now. If you don't know this story is over 200 pages long. When I go to my next story I will see about getting a beta reader.

Disclaimer: I don't own IY. Just like I don't own my mind. I sold it at a yard sale for a quarter.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 55: Forgotten Memories Recalled

Kohaku looked around the dark dreary cell that he had been placed in. He was surrounded by three brick walls and iron bars on the remaining side. He had used all his father taught him to look for a way out but he could find none. The only thing he could do was sit down and wait. "_Father would be so disappointed in me. I'm sure Sango could get out of this prison with ease. Then again she wouldn't have gotten herself caught either. I'm 14 years old and I'm still no demon slayer. By the time Sango was 14 most people in the village believed that she would become the best demon slayer they had in only a few more years._"

Kohaku was ripped from his thoughts as the door to the cell was opened. He looked at the same person that had brought him. He was dragging a girl with him. She was currently unconscious. As soon as the door was fully open, he threw the girl inside with no regard for her at all. Kohaku acted quickly and tried to catch her but from her momentum he collided with the wall behind him. Soon Rin was lying on top of Kohaku both of them unconscious.

* * *

Before Rin even opened her eyes, she felt cold. She could feel that there was someone beneath her. She slowly opened her eyes and saw a young boy about her age lying there and he seemed to be out cold. She was worried if he was okay. Rin quickly got off him and checked over him to see if he had any visible injuries. He didn't seem to be bleeding at all. Once she was sure he was okay she decided to look around. She was in a dark and slightly wet cell. There was only a small window to see out but that didn't hold any light either. The outside seemed even darker than in her cell. She then went over to the iron bars that held them inside. Though she was still a little small she was unable to fit through the bars. 

"There's no way out," Kohaku said to her. While she had been taking in her surrounds he had come to. "I've thoroughly checked this place out. Not even a loose stone to pry out."

"How did you get here?" Rin asked him.

"I was with my sister when we got attacked and I was captured," Kohaku replied. "How about you?"

"I was captured as well," she stated. Rin then looked at Kohaku a little strangely. There was something there she couldn't place. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"You know, I get that feeling too," Kohaku said. They then proceed to look over each other closely as if trying to recall how they knew each other. When their eyes met both turned away blushing a bit. It then hit Kohaku, "I remember, you were at Lord Inutaisho's castle five years ago. There was a feast and you joined us in the middle." Rin remembered that.

She had been traveling with Lord Sesshomaru when he had decided to go far West. They had gotten to a castle and found the Lord's brother, Inuyasha, along with many other people she hadn't known. Even though she recalled this something still bothered her. "I still think there's something else."

"I get that feeling as well but I can't remember anything else," Kohaku said. "Could it have anything to do with Naraku? I don't remember everything when he was controlling me."

"That's right. I remember when Miss Kagura took me away from Lord Sesshomaru to see Naraku. He put me in a small hut and you were there with me," Rin said. "You don't remember that?"

"There are a few things I still don't remember from when Naraku manipulated me. Tell me everything you exactly remember and hopefully it will jog my memory," he told her. He usually didn't want to remember things that happened then but it might help them now. Besides he was hoping that he hadn't actually hurt the girl at all.

Rin had to think about it for a second to recall everything but she then told him of how Kagura had come and taken her while Sesshomaru had been away. Then she had been placed in a hut with him. She remembered then running through the woods with Kohaku but couldn't remember much more after that.

It hadn't taken long for the words of her story to drudge up old buried memories for Kohaku. He remembered being ordered by Naraku to watch the girl. She had been bait to lure Sesshomaru to Naraku. She was also kept in a separate location as a sort of back up plan incase his main plan failed. He remembered being ordered by Naraku to take the girl into the woods and then to kill her.

"What happened when we went into the woods?" Rin asked him.

"I'm not sure you want to know," Kohaku said as he hung his head in shame.

"Whatever happened, I don't blame you. Please tell me," Rin seemed to plead.

Kohaku took a deep breath. "Fine. I took you into the woods at Naraku's command. Apparently his plan for Sesshomaru had failed and he sought to draw Sesshomaru away from him and after you, yet he also wanted him to suffer. So after going far enough into the forest, he ordered me to kill you. When I raised my scythe at you, you got scared and tried to run away. I used my chain to stop you and you fainted. That is why you don't remember. Luckily Sesshomaru arrived in time to stop me from killing you. I am truly sorry for what I did."

"It's alright. Lord Sesshomaru told me that Naraku tried many people. He used you just like he did Miss Kagura," Rin said.

"He told you that?"

"Well he didn't tell me that you were but I can tell. You're too nice of a person to actually want to hurt someone," Rin said.

"Thanks," Kohaku said blushing a bit.

"So there's no way out?" Rin asked bringing them back to their dismal reality.

"No, the only thing we can do is wait for help," Kohaku said. "Don't worry I'm sure help will come for us."

"I'm not worried. I know Lord Sesshomaru will come to save me and then you can escape with us," Rin exclaimed.

Kohaku knew that their situation was grim. Their attacker had been part of Naraku and he figured that this guy could hide just as well as Naraku could. It could be a long time until they are found. Even with all this weighing on his conscious, he still felt hope. "_Who couldn't feel hope with this girl with them,_" Kohaku thought. Their situation was bad yet she still held faith in the demon lord. She may have been a bit naïve but at a time like now it was totally bad. She could probably inspire hope in even the direst circumstances. He had to admire her. At the very least, he'd make sure she made it out all right.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#_**

Okay so everyone got a chance to see how Rin and Kohaku are doing. I had not expected it when writing this saga but I figured I might as well set up the Kohaku/Rin pairing as well. Also since it was mentioned in a big author note last time people might have missed it so I'm going to ask this again here in bold:

**Does anyone know of any good Sesshomaru/Kagura stories? I'm looking for ones where they are the main couple or at least a supporting couple with a large part. 3 that I know now are: Call Me Tomorrow, The Ad, and Mondays (though the Sess/Kagura pairing hasn't come up yet).**

Thanks once again. Please review. I'm not trying to beg, I'm just hoping that in the 10 remaining chapters (give or take), I might reach 2000 reviews. I truly believe I'm setting my sights a little high but I just like anyone am welcome to dream. Also one final note. The next chapter will see our mysterious villian named (as well as an origin). I already have his name figured out. The only problem is that it isn't Japanese. I ask for your patience with the name unless of course I decided to change it. Either way join me next time when we return to Inuyasha and the group for:

**Chapter 56: A Cold Reception**


	57. Chapter 56 A Cold Reception

Well everyone school is turning out okay. I keep on missing that damn 8 am CSE class, and that's the good CSE class! My second one is taught by the most horrible teacher I have ever known, I should stop now before I ramble on about him. Other than that I'm enjoying my Japanese Literature and Culture class as well as my Intro to Fiction Writing course. I think I got a jump start on the latter. Every week though we have to turn in 600 words to a story we will be working on towards the end of the semester. This is going to take up a bit of my writing time but hopefully not too much.

Thank you to all you who have given me titles to IY stories with the Sess/Kagura pairing. When I get a chance I'll have to read them. Until then, enjoy reading my story.

Disclaimer: Sorry I still don't own Inu.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 56: A Cold Reception

As the group approach the cottage, they looked around and made sure no one else was around. They hoped that their common enemy had not thought about going after Kagura. "So should be just go up and knock?" Inuyasha asked.

"That won't be necessary," Kagura voice called out as she came from behind the cottage. "And what may I ask are you doing here?"

"We came to see our favorite detachment of Naraku," Inuyasha said with his usual smirk.

"Thanks a lot, I feel so loved," Kagura voice dripping with sarcasm. She looked over the group that came to her cottage. It didn't surprise her to see Sesshomaru here. He had passed by a few times. How ever though Inuyasha and Kagome's appearance was a bit surprising which was made even stranger by the fact that Sesshomaru seemed to be willing traveling with them. "I'm the only remaining part of Naraku so it isn't hard to be your favorite. Did you come to finish me off as well?"

"You're wrong on both accounts," Inuyasha said. She looked at him with confusion and a small bit of fear. "There seems to be one other detachment alive." Kagura's face fell a little more at this. This couldn't be good. She had thought she was the only detachment left.

"You still have yet to give me a reason as to why you are here?" Kagura said as she quickly regained her composure.

"My brother is trying to ask for help," Sesshomaru said pointedly. While Inuyasha glared at his brother for speaking up as he did, Inuyasha didn't deny it.

"I see and are you traveling with him?" she asked as she looked at the demon lord.

"Our alliance is only temporary," he told her.

"Then the answer is no," Kagura said simply. "I'd wish you a nice day but I really don't give a damn about your day." She then turned her back on them and walked into her small cottage.

Everyone seemed shocked by Kagura's response, at least everyone but Sesshomaru. He could have been surprised but his facial expression told nothing. Kagome leaned in towards Inuyasha, "hey I thought these two were suppose to get along?"

"Don't ask me. I always thought it was a little weird," Inuyasha responded.

Kagome walked up to the cottage. "Kagura may I come in?"

"Why do you ask such a stupid question? I know that if I say no that you won't leave yet I really don't want to yes," Kagura replied. "Do whatever the hell you want, I don't care."

Kagome slowly walked inside and sat down across from Kagura. "Why won't you help us?"

"Ask Mr. Emotionless out there. He should know," Kagura responded.

"I have no idea what you are referring to," the lord responded from her door entrance.

"Either your playing stupid or you have a very bad memory," Kagura spat back at him.

"You have not given any sort of indication as to what you are talking about so there is no way you can expect anyone to know what you are referring to without read your mind. And I don't think anywhere here possess such an ability," Sesshomaru replied.

Kagura's anger just seemed to increase. "Okay here's your hint. You've come asking for help from me, well just like when I came to you, I'm telling you no!" she yelled as she got face to face with him.

"This is an entire different situation," Sesshomaru said.

"Yeah, you're the one asking for help this time and I'm the one telling you no."

"I don't recall you asking for help nor do I recall myself ever telling you no," Sesshomaru said.

If anyone thought Kagura had been mad before, they quickly learned that they had seen nothing yet. Kagura literally exploded with anger. All the wind around her just seemed to become extremely fast. Inuyasha and Kagome were thrown back by the force of it. Sesshomaru just stood his ground. Kagura didn't mind though because her right fist hit him right in the face. He was surprised at her sudden display of aggression but when she went to punch him again he quickly caught her fist. "I won't stand for any more of your misplaced anger," he told her.

"Misplaced? You have the balls to say that to me. You come asking me for help knowing that you turned me down and you even deny that," she yelled at him while pulling out of his grip. "I don't think my anger is misplaced at all!"

"As I recall you came to me with 2 Shikon shards and asked me to defeat Naraku," Sesshomaru said. "I recall telling you that I would not fight for someone that would not fight for themselves."

"Well that sure as hell sounded like a no to me!" Kagura continued to yell.

"Then you aren't as smart as I once took you to be."

"Why you, asshole," Kagura grinded out as she advanced on him once again. Before she could reach him though, Kagome placed her hand on her shoulder and tried to calm her.

"Kagura, please calm down," Kagome said trying to soothe the furious woman. "I think I know what he is trying to say." Kagura stopped and turned to Kagome though she was still fuming. "I think what he's trying to say is you didn't ask for his help, you asked for him to do something for you as if he was some servant or mercenary. He had replied by telling you that if you weren't willing to fight for what you wanted there was no reason for him to help you."

"So he's putting the blame off of me," Kagura said. "Forgive me if I don't speak the language of an ice cube. Because of that I spent even more time with that asshole that created me. Because of even going outside that time I was locked away!"

"Kagura, will you please help us?" Kagome pleaded.

"Why do you want my help?" Kagura asked. At this point she felt she should at least find out why they had come in search of her.

"We think that you might still have a connection with this other detachment and you might know where he is," Inuyasha said.

"So I don't sound like Mr. Unfeeling over here but that tells me what you want me for. You make it sound like I just some sort of detector," Kagura said. Kagome felt a bit more compassion for Kagura at this point, she knew what it was like to think of yourself as a detector. "Why do you want my help?" Kagura repeated.

"Sango's brother, Kohaku, has been taken," Kagome told her solemnly.

Kagura remembered the kid well enough. He had been used cruelly by Naraku. She thought of him being the only other person that knew her pain of being used by that bastard. Kagura then realized something. She turned to Sesshomaru, who was still just standing there watching everything play out, "Then why are you here?"

"Rin has been taken as well," he replied promptly. Kagura felt even worse at this. That girl was so innocent. She didn't deserve to be caught up in all this. Kagura remembered when she had kidnapped the girl; even then Rin had been nice to her whenever she saw Kagura. It didn't seem right that the girl should suffer such a fate.

It was at this point that Kagura made her decision. "While I don't own you a damn thing," she said glaring at Sesshomaru, "in a way I own a debt to you." Kagura said looking at Inuyasha and Kagome. "You were the ones that freed me from Naraku's control so I will repay my debt as I can. I don't really know your new enemies location but I can tell you about your enemy."

"How much do you know?" Inuyasha asked.

"Only what I have been able to pick up while I was under Naraku's control, though he barely spoke of it."

"Does this guy have a name?" Inuyasha inquired some more.

"Yes, if I remember correctly I believe that Naraku had referred to him as Cerberus, though I don't know why."

"Cerberus refers to Greek mythology," Kagome said.

"What's so special about him?" Inuyasha asked. While he had spent time in Kagome's school, he didn't care a thing about mythology other than that of Japan's. That's cause he usually lived though most of it.

"He was the guardian of the underworld, which is why he is often called the Hound of Hell."

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#_**

Okay well that's about it for this chapter. I can't think of much to say at the end here. I can say thank you for the reviews and keep them coming. At this rate, I might be able to hit 2000! YAY. Well join me next time for:

**Chapter 57: Naraku's Worst Nightmare**


	58. Chapter 57 Naraku’s Worst Nightmare

Okay, I'd first like every to slowly and calmly put down the torches and pitchforks. I am not an evil person so go witchhunt someone else. Also any in black that is here for a funeral, I'd like to say now, "the rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated." I'm alive though I can't say well. No I'm not sick just going nuts of school. I've had to late drop one of my classes which could end up pushing back my graduation by a semester (I don't like this thought). Why else have I been away for so long? Well part of it is once again laziness another part forgetfulness, lastily mix in a little bit of anime craziness and you got me.

I would like to talk about the anime bit. First off, I've seen Fushigi Yuugi (all of it). As a matter of fact, I watched episodes 3-52 (52's the last for those of you who don't know) in less than 3 days! I watched all the OVAs (techinally 13 though one is double lengthed so 14) the next night. I loved the series. I thought it was awesome. It was a break from the Rumiko Takashi formula of 2 characters loving one another but can't admit it to anyone (even themselves). I recommend it to everyone. Be forewarned though, the series does deal with some adult issues so make sure you are of the proper age.

Before Fushigi Yuugi though was Katsucon. Katsucon is an anime convention in Arlington, VA. I got lucky in the fact that my brother lives in Alexandria. So Katsucon became my second anime convention (my first full one though). The only problem was that I ended up spending far more than I would have liked. Almost 400! I was a little broke after that. I got some really cool stuff though, like an Naginata. This is a pole-arm type weapon and about 4-5 feet in length. My parents weren't too happy but I'm old enough to have it so who cares. I also got a nice small 4-way pop out knife (don't ask me what they actually call it). BTW, no I'm not a weapons nut. The Naginata was my first weapon that I bought and as for the knife, it looks similar to one I'm thinking up for an original story. While there I got the usual T-shirts and wall scrolls. My most favorite thing that I got though was some IY fan art. The art was just ing awesome. That little story will continue at the end of this chapter with links to the artists deviant art where you can see the pieces I bought.

Disclaimer: though I bought IY fan art, I still don't own the actual IY.

**A Wish From the Heart  
**

Chapter 57: Naraku's Worst Nightmare

"So his name is Cerberus. Can you tell us anything else?" Inuyasha asked being a bit irritated.

"I'm being nice for telling you anything so just relax and be patient," Kagura told him.

"Well I do not have all day to stand around," Sesshomaru said. "If you do not tell us something value, we might as well leave now."

Kagura turned and glared at him. "Just remember, if it wasn't for them I'd be telling you nothing," she said as she barely held back her anger.

"Will you two please calm down," Kagome said trying to make peace. "_I can hardly believe that they'll end up together in the future. I just don't think I see it. Then again if I look back on it, I would have never guessed Inuyasha and I would have ended up together. It seems Inuyasha's family is just full of curve balls._"

"If I were you, I'd put him on a lease rather than Inuyasha," Kagura commented.

"I am not some household pet," Sesshomaru said in defense.

"Yeah I realized that," Kagura said. "When you tell pets to sit and be quiet they at least listen."

"Shut up both of you!" Inuyasha yelled. "Listen I don't care what sort of problems you two have. You can work them out after we are finished. Sesshomaru, for right now do what she says and shut the hell up! She's the only lead we have right now and at this rate she won't tell us anything." Inuyasha turned around to Kagura. She had a grin on her face and looking at Sesshomaru just to spite him. "And you, quit provoking him!"

"Alright already," Kagura said getting tired of the arguing. "It was shortly before Naraku's defeat. Through the death of Kikyo, Kohaku, and many other countless innocent people, Naraku filled the Shikon jewel with all their pain, anger, and suffering. All those deaths were just to make him stronger."

"That's terrible. They were nothing more than food to him," Kagome said disgusted.

"He didn't seem all that much stronger when we beat him," Inuyasha said.

"Can you wait until I'm finished?" Kagura asked him. "As I was saying, all this new power added itself to the jewel and also made Naraku stronger, in fact, it made him too strong. The jewel had grown too powerful and was practically overflowing with the power it could not contain.

"At the same time Naraku had grown so powerful his body was having a hard time staying together. The bonds that held his body together were too weak to hold back the huge sudden influx of power. He decided that another detachment would be a good outlet for the extra power. He also felt it would be yet another good person to have to help in our fight with you.

"You're still not telling me anything much of interest," Inuyasha stated.

"Now who is the one that needs to shut up," Sesshomaru replied. "If you would just relax, I'm sure she'll get to her point some day."

Kagura didn't miss the insult but decided not to let it bother her. She just continued on with her story. "As he created the detachment, more energy was drained from him then he had wanted. Cerberus was feeding off of him; taking as much power as he could before Naraku finally cut him off. When this was done, Naraku was as strong as he was normally. I think Cerberus might have even been more power than Naraku was. He acted like Mouso and Kageromaru before him. He held no loyalty to Naraku. It just made things worse that he was more powerful than Naraku. They fought for a long time. Naraku to reabsorb him and Cerberus was fighting to stay alive. They're battle took them away from the castle and I decided to stay put for the time being. I figured that if Naraku was gone long enough I would be able to escape. Another part of me was worried that should he come back and find me gone I could be killed. So I waited.

"It was two days before Naraku returned. He seemed quite tired and haggard. Though from the way he carried himself I thought he had been successful in getting Cerberus back. He then proceeded to go back in the castle and spend his powerless day of the month. It was because of his powerless day that I was unable to tell how the battle truly came out. I assumed that he won but there was always something nagging at the back of my mind telling me that something was different."

"You know, there's something I don't get," Kagome said. "Naraku kept your heart as a way of controlling you, yet he never did anything to keep control of Cerberus, why?"

"Because I wasn't strong enough," Kagura said as if that answered everything. Sesshomaru's eyes seemed trained on her at that moment. "Most of Naraku's detachment's obeyed him. When I was born, I tried immediately to get away. He was too strong though. After he was done beating me, I was slightly conscious as he ripped my heart out of my body. As I lost consciousness, I didn't expect to wake back up. When I did I tried to escape once again and it was then that I found the control he had against me.

"So if Naraku had been able to defeat Cerberus, he probably would have done something to get control over him," Kagura said. "But as you know that didn't happen and he went free while I was still in hell."

"So that's why you went to Sesshomaru for help, you knew you couldn't beat him on your own," Kagome said.

"Yes, and thank you for rubbing it in," Kagura said in a raised tone of voice.

Kagome turned to Sesshomaru, "Turning down a person in need, that doesn't seem very honorable, does it?"

"Don't dare question my honor," Sesshomaru replied with a sneer.

Kagura let a smile drift on to her face. She would have liked to keep pushing but he would have just countered with his original argument. At least this way, she felt a little bit better about the situation. "If you want to find Cerberus, head to the south-east."

"I thought you said you didn't know where he was," Inuyasha said.

"I don't know exactly where he is but I do know a general area. Besides it seems to come and go. He's hiding himself very good and only every now and ten can I sense him," Kagura said.

"That's splitting hairs," Sesshomaru warned.

"That's something you know all too well about, huh?" Kagura replied.

Kagome sensed another possible fight about to occur. "Thank you very much for your help, Kagura," she interjected.

"Whatever," Kagura said not caring too much, "its because of you that I'm free of Naraku, so my debt is paid. Have fun against Cerberus." As she watched them go, her eyes met with Sesshomaru and locked on them.

Sesshomaru turned as he went to find Kagura's eyes aimed at him. He stopped for but a second before going. When he walked out the door their eye contact was finally broken.

"_You know for a second it looked as if he was actually sorry,_" Kagura thought to herself. "_What am I saying? He should feel sorry. I asked him for help and he turned me down. Surprising though, I never would have expected him to join up with Inuyasha. Maybe there's more to him than I realized._"

_**#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&**_

Before I talk about the art I bought I want to reach out to all fan fic readers. I'm looking to find a story I once read and would enjoy reading it again. Those of you who've only been here at for less than a year, you may not know the story. The summary will have some spoilers but I would greatly appreciate the help

**Its an AU story. IY is in a band with Sango and Miroku (I believe, could be more members). Myouga is the manager/agent. He claims that they need someone new. Enter Kagome who they meet at some sort of club and becomes their lead singer. Of course IY is usually depressed (I think over Kikyo) but Kagome and him get closer and closer. After a small agrument, Kagome leaves and signs a contract with Naraku but she goes back to the Inu group. It isn't until later that Naraku brings the contract out and forcefully takes Kagome. Where as I believe they'd been singing punk, Naraku forces here to sing pop and other stuff. Finally Myouga is able to get Kag out of the contract and back with Inu. Myouga also mentions that he knew of Kagome before she joined the group. He wanted her to join to get IY out of his depressing funk. (Now this last part could be from a different fic but I think its still the same) IY and the group are at some sort of diner enjoying a meal and of course some fans do recognize them. One of them is Kikyo who thinks IY still likes her and that she can wrap him around her fingers. She asks him out and he agrees on the exception that he is allowed to bring his 'ball and chain' referring to Kag. Kikyo isn't happy and leaves. End of Story.**

While the punk music band stuff can be common, I hoped that with my in-depth summary someone would know the story. Thanks for all your help. Kudos to whoever can tell me what the story is.

I guess I'll continue my thing from the top. I bought to very nice pieces of art. Cost me over 100 combined. The cool thing was that I got to meet the artist, though by accident. For those who haven't been to cons, you can buy pieces of art at an Art Show. If this piece has enough bids it might go to the auction. The first piece I bought I managed to snipe the bid in the last minute. The previous bidder had bid 55 for it. I bid 56 and got the piece. For the second piece, I placed the bid that would send it to auction, 46, luckily no one else there wanted it and I got it. Both pieces were done by the same artist, in fact my older (and not very much into anime) brother got a piece of Sesshomaru done by her. He liked it cause it looked apocalyptic. Well anyway when they got to one of her pieces they asked if the artist that had done the piece was there. Lo and behold she was sitting practically next to me. There was a small isle that went through the room and she was right on the other side of it. I was quite surprised. Here are links to the pieces I bought (remember to remove spaces) also click on pics to see bigger versions:

www. deviantart. com/deviation/5125455/ - This is the piece I got for 46.

www. deviantart. com/deviation/2221643/ - This is the apocalyptic piece my brother got.

www. deviantart. com/deviation/1891197/ - This is the one for 56 and very much worth it. I saved the best for last.

druihd.deviantart. com/ - Artist's deviation page.

As I'm sure you can tell from checking out the pics, the artist is fucking awesome. If you didn't check them out, GO BACK AND DO IT NOW! Druihd does an awesome job in her artwork. I've been considering commissioning a piece of Sess/Kagura for her to do. I think she would do a great job. If you are ever at a con and have a chance to get a piece by her, I recommend doing so.

Now for another story referral. I've got two this time. I've managed to read another IY fan fic while away but I also read a FY story. I told you I watched too much Fushigi Yuugi. I recommend both. They are complete. IY story is multi-chapter though not too big and the FY is a short one-shot. Enjoy.

**Miroku & Sango: The Ecchi & the Furious** by **_Saori Runa _**- 1091435

**Food for Thought** by **_stormlight _**1960540

I hope my next chapter comes soon. I'm getting a better idea of what is to come. Come next time for:

**Chapter 58: Two for One**


	59. Chapter 58 Two For One

Hello once again to a serious delay installment of my story. To anyone who cares, all my finals seemed to go well. I've passed all my classes. Grades are as follows: A, A-, B, B-, and C. So all in all things worked out okay for me. I've also started working again for the summer. Because of the pay period is 2 weeks and the first paycheck is delayed by one I'm holding on to what little money I can. In other words, I'M BROKE. Just have to last until next Friday. Then I have to pay everyone off. I owe my dad for a speed ticket (ouch), my brother for my new 250 GB hard drive, and my comp needs a new power supply (its dying), and I'm also getting a new cell phone (my old Tracfone sucks). Other than that, there isn't much to tell. During the weeks before finals, I read a fanfic to relax and surprisingly within a week managed for read that which is equal to a 700 page book. I really start to pity those people that read my story all at once. Its now more than 230 pages. Other than that, the story is drawing to a close. Hopefully soon cause I've delayed you guys long enough. Plus I'm eager to get started on a new fanfic project. I'm still waiting for the green light on it. I'll fill you guys in later on it.

I still don't own Inuyasha, I just kidnapped and stuck him in my story.

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 58: Two for One

Kagura sat on a small stump in front of her home. She had continued to watch the sunset soon after Sesshomaru, Inuyasha, and Kagome had disappeared from her view. While she watched she tried to sort out her feelings with Sesshomaru but got no where. At the same time she worried about Rin. Though Kagura had only met her for a little bit she had been such a carefree child. She didn't deserve to be caught in the middle of this. The girl had even been nice to Kagura shortly after kidnapping her. Whenever Sesshomaru surveyed his lands and came near her home, Rin would wave towards the house even if she didn't know Kagura was watching. "_Maybe I should have gone with them. Not because of Sesshomaru though_," she reasoned with herself, "_only for Rin._"

Kagura then noticed that the sun had gone down not too long ago. She got up and made her way into her house. She looked at her jars on her shelves trying to decide what to eat. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't get her mind off the matter at hand. "Arrg. Alright," Kagura said to no one but her own conscious. "I'll help them tomorrow, make them sweat a little. _Especially Sesshomaru._"

"You won't be helping anyone," a voice called out from within the darkness of the house.

Kagura turned towards the voice but could only see darkness. "You," she said the fear evident in her voice. "What do you want with me?"

Cerberus let out a cackle of a laugh. "I want to make sure you won't help that group of misfits. You've done your part by sending them my way. Now all that is left to do is wait for them."

"Fine, I won't help them," Kagura said. She knew she was totally outmatched. There was no need to complain of being a coward, though her pride would make sure she never begged.

"As I said your assistance to me is no longer required yet I can't take your word that you shall provide no assistance to Inuyasha and the others." He slowly moved towards her.

Kagura knew it was no good. He wouldn't just leave. Out of the corner of her eye she could see her usual fan on the other side of the room. "Fine then, don't expect me to die without a fight," she said as she took off towards the fan. She was sent in another direction as a wave of energy struck her from the side.

"That little fan of your won't help you," Cerberus said as he stood in between her and her goal. "Now your time here is up."

Kagome watched as Inuyasha walked along side her. She knew her mate well enough to know that something was bothering him. He was quiet and seemed to try and be aware of everything going on. That might have been good except he seemed to be intent on just the group and nothing beyond it. No worry of any dangers that could be around them. Kagome had put up with it for the last hour or so and she couldn't take it anymore.

"Inuyasha, what's wrong?" she asked loudly enough for him to know she was serious yet quiet enough so as to not agitate their other party member. Inuyasha though didn't speak up. She knew he could hear her but he was too introverted at this point to respond. She knew she could continue to speak to him with no luck. She leaned in closely to his ear before whispering, "Sit boy."

That shook Inuyasha out of his trance very quickly. So much that he tripped and fell to the ground on his own power rather than the beads. Kagome just laughed as he looked at her from the ground. He growled as he pulled himself out of the dirt, "Quit laughing."

"Did you forget? The subduing spell disappeared when I put that disguise spell on you," Kagome said with a grin still on her face.

"What did you want?" asked fuming.

"Don't get angry with me, if you'd respond when I call to you I wouldn't have to shake you out of your daydreams," Kagome warned him. "Now what's got you in this funk?"

Inuyasha was about to answer with a simple nothing but he knew his mate better than that. She wouldn't give up and unless he totally erupted at her she could continue to pester him. He wasn't looking forward to that so he came clean, "He's what's bothering me," Inuyasha said motioning behind him. There was Sesshomaru behind them not paying them any mind.

"So he's been quiet and been keeping to himself, what's new?"

"I guess you can't sense it as well as I can. He may seem to still have his cool manner around him but its not really there. That thing with Kagura is really eating at him. He may not be showing it but then again he never shows anything."

"So what do you suppose we do?"

"That's what I've been thinking about. If we were to ask him about it directly, he'll totally deny it and won't even listen to us for a while."

"You should not talk about people behind their backs," their other companion said from not to far behind them.

Inuyasha and Kagome froze and slowly turned to look at him. "Well we weren't really talking behind your back since you're behind us," Inuyasha said.

"A mere technicality. You know what I mean," Sesshomaru said. "Even if I was in deep thought, I make sure to pay attention to what is occurring around me."

"So you're not denying it," Kagome pointed out. "Any chance we can get you to talk about it."

"If I was thinking about what Kagura said, it is a personal matter which you have no part in."

"_Well actually we do. We have to make sure you and her get together_," Kagome thought. Kagome's thoughts were suddenly jarred from her mind as an explosion occurred behind them.

All of them looked back and had the same thought but it was Inuyasha that spoke it, "That's where Kagura lives." They wasted no time in heading back to where they had just come from.

When the trio arrived they only found remnants of a battle. The house, which Kagura lived in and seemed so proud of, now lay collapsed in on itself, burning. As they looked on, they could see Kagura had put up a fight but it had been in vane. Inuyasha surveyed the area. It had Cerberus written all over it. He then looked at his companions. He first looked to his brother and was shocked. Behind the frozen exterior he was continuing to give off, Inuyasha could see surprise, hurt, and sadness. "_Maybe this is why father never gave up hope. He could read Sesshomaru and know how he felt._" Sesshomaru was much more difficult than a book Not only did you have to read between the lines but also know the language. Inuyasha knew he was getting there.

"Does this mean, that Kagura is …?" Kagome's tear-filled question stayed in the air unfinished.

"No," Inuyasha said. "There is no scent of death here. Besides Cerberus' and Kagura's most recent scent lead away from the house. Unfortunately it disappears soon after. I'd say he made off with Kagura just like the others."

"Then we will leave now," Sesshomaru all but ordered. "I will not standby and play this demon's game. Since he is so hesitant to face us then we will face him." Nothing was left up to choice as Sesshomaru took off quickly with Inuyasha and Kagome not far behind him.

Kagome slowly sank to the ground. She had thought Inuyasha had been bad when they had gone on their jewel hunting, Sesshomaru was much worse. He blamed her wanting to stop for rest or food a human weakness. After a while she reminded him that he was going on this trip for a human. Of course he tried to blame it off on that fact that his home was attack and that mandated his presence yet he didn't complain again.

As they stopped for the night, Kagome set about getting wood for a fire while Inuyasha hunted for food. Kagome was just starting to get the fire going when she felt a presence. At the same time, Sesshomaru, who had been sitting idly by, seemed to sense it as well. He stood up and took a fighting stance.

"I don't think we should resort to violence just yet," Kagome offered as she too stood up from her kneeling position. "We should first find out his intent."

"His presence is unnecessary."

Kagome quickly found herself guarding herself from the giant gust of wind that seemed to appear out of no where. Kagome then looked at the new arrivals. "Hello Kouga. Ayame."

I was thinking about ending it here but I figure I'll continue anyway.

"What are you doing here wolf?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Well sorry for not telling you in advance," Kouga said insulted.

"If you were not a comrade of my brother's I would have you killed for disrespect," Sesshomaru said.

"Calm down, Sess," Inuyasha said as he appeared with a few animal carcasses. He then turned to Kouga, "Don't mind him. He's a bit testy right now. So what brings you here?"

"Well I could smell you guys and I thought I'd see how my woman is doing," Kouga had just gotten the words out of his mouth when he found himself face down in dirt courtesy of Ayame.

Inuyasha leaned in to whisper to Kagome, "I'll take your sit command over that any day." Kagome could only laugh.

"Why do you do that? After all we've been through, don't you care at all?" Ayame asked.

"I was just joking. Don't take it so seriously," Kouga said as he pulled himself up.

Kagome looked to Inuyasha a little confused. Inuyasha filled in for her, "Their in the beginning stages of becoming mates."

"Congratulations," Kagome said.

"I just don't know if your serious or not," Ayame said to Kouga with a few tears in her eyes.

"I'm serious. I was just joking with the 'my woman' comment. I promise I'll never do it again," Kouga said.

"I'll take that bet," Kagome said. Inuyasha looked at her. She leaned in very closely and whispered, "He does it in the battle with Kitiara. Just fun for bragging rights."

"I'm really starting to rub off on you," he said back.

A loud cough made everyone's attention shift to Sesshomaru, who had been ignored for the last few minutes. "You still have yet to state the reason that you are here."

Kouga sighed and realized the joking was done. "I'm here because I could smell the stench of Naraku. He may have died over five years ago, but I vowed to make sure that every part of him was dead. So if there is some new detachment, I feel it is my duty to make sure it joins Naraku in the afterlife."

"We don't need you help," Sesshomaru said.

"But it is greatly appreciated and accepted," Inuyasha added. He then turned to his brother, "now is not the time for your stupid pride. As far as we can tell, Cerberus is as cunning as Naraku if not more so. I want to kill him in one fight, not have to chase him all over Japan."

"Do what you wish but I will not require your assistance in my fight," Sesshomaru said before returning to is quiet introverted self.

Kagome once again leaned into Inuyasha to speak, "If he's out to kill all Naraku detachment's, what about Kagura?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha replied. "We'll deal with that when we come to it."

**_ #&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well that's it for this chapter. Next chapter might be a little small but hopefully I'll finish it quickly. I once again ask for your help finding a fanfic: .

**Its an AU story. IY is in a band with Sango and Miroku (I believe, could be more members). Myouga is the manager/agent. He claims that they need someone new. Enter Kagome who they meet at some sort of club and becomes their lead singer. Of course IY is usually depressed (I think over Kikyo) but Kagome and him get closer and closer. After a small agrument, Kagome leaves and signs a contract with Naraku but she goes back to the Inu group. It isn't until later that Naraku brings the contract out and forcefully takes Kagome. Where as I believe they'd been singing punk, Naraku forces here to sing pop and other stuff. Finally Myouga is able to get Kag out of the contract and back with Inu. Myouga also mentions that he knew of Kagome before she joined the group. He wanted her to join to get IY out of his depressing funk. (Now this last part could be from a different fic but I think its still the same) IY and the group are at some sort of diner enjoying a meal and of course some fans do recognize them. One of them is Kikyo who thinks IY still likes her and that she can wrap him around her fingers. She asks him out and he agrees on the exception that he is allowed to bring his 'ball and chain' referring to Kag. Kikyo isn't happy and leaves. End of Story.**

If you know this fanfic, let me know. Well that's it for today. Join me next time for:

**Chapter 59: Three's Company**


	60. Chapter 59 Three's Company

To whatever fans I still have out there hello once again. I must say every time I come out with a new chapter, after taking so long, I feel I have to explain why. But then again its the same excuses again and again. So after doing some internal thinking, I have come up with the fullest answer I will find. This is also the last time I will do this. When I take a while there are usually 3 reasons at fault. 1st is lack of inspiration/ideas or laziness. This has happened a few times but not as often as you might think. 2nd is forgetfulness. If I stop working on something for even a day, I might totally forget about it. After posting this story and reading your reviews I might forget about this for a week (though your reviews do remind me). This reason is also tied in with the 3rd reason. 3rd is other projects. I'm not a person that is content with 1 project at a time. Right now, I am working on this story, thinking about 3 original stories, thinking about a cosplay outfit for Otakon (this has been dwarfed often by other projects), and the biggest of them all, I'm working on writing a fan parody. For those who don't know a fan parody is a fan written story that then uses regular anime and dubs over it. Such good examples of this (that you can find online) is This is Otakudom and Evangelion: Redeath. In fact those are the only two that I've seen. The fan parody is taking up most of my time simply because I'm the main (and for the most part the only) person working on this. I'll have help once the thing gets up and running but right now I'm on my own. I'll do as much writing to this fanfic as I can but I cannot promise anything. I thank anyone though who has stuck by me through all of this.

Also people will notice that this chapter was written differently. This chapter is written from a 1st person POV. This was done because I wanted to do something different and I like how much of a personal feeling you can get with the characters from this POV. Also small reminder, not counting the epilogue there should be no more than 5 chapters left. So enjoy this while you can.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own IY (I wish I could stop saying this too but its required).

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 59: Three's Company

**&&&&&** This is told from a 1st person POV **&&&&&**

You would think if you left the world alone, it would leave you alone. Yeah right. I just wanted to escape from everything. But some people just couldn't leave well enough alone. If Sesshomaru or the others hadn't come to me, I'd probably still be sitting at home staring at the sky waiting for life to pass me by.

Then again there is the possibility that Cerberus would come after me anyway. I'm just trying to push the blame off on Sesshomaru. What does it matter I blame him for plenty now, a little more won't hurt.

Ahh, I just want to be left to be left alone. If that was ever happened I'd have to be buried six feet underground and at this point it seems that's the only way it would ever be true. This just happens to be one of those days where I wish it was. Days? It could be night for all I know. I'm just sitting here pondering shit in my wonderful state of unconsciousness.

**&&&&&**

My eyes slowly opened and I saw my nightmares were true. There would be no luck telling if it was night or day for all around me was darkness caused by a barrier. My hands were bound together and then behind my back. My feet were tied up as well. I could see, what I guessed to be, Cerberus hideout. My idea was supported by the fact that he was carrying me there at the moment. With my hands tied together I was unable to summon any of my wind powers.

"If you even think about struggling I'll knock you back out," Cerberus warned. "At this point, I just don't feel like wasting my time."

"Whatever you can kiss my ass, I'm not going to help you at all," I retorted.

"I'm not looking for a helper, I'm looking for another hostage. If Kagome and her friends value you at all, they'll try to save you. You're just another reason for them to come."

"I don't care what your reason is, I'm not going to make this easy for you," I said and struggled the best I could.

"I told you if you struggled I'd knock you out again."

"And I said I wouldn't make it easy on you," I gathered my strength and kneed him in the chest. Cerberus lost his grip on me and she I found myself dropping out of the sky. "_Shit, I didn't even realize I was in the air._" With my hands tied, I could barely summon a gust of wind to decelerate my descent. I crashed through many dead trees which helped to slow me down but did happen to hurt. I cringed in preparation to hit the ground but it never came. Instead I opened my eyes to see the worst site for the second time today. I didn't have them open long but enough to hear him speak.

"While not easier, you're only as bad as a fly to me."

**&&&&&**

My head was pounding. "Arrrg, I feel like I drank too much." Despite the fact that I wish it was a simple hangover, I knew it was far worst. While I didn't want to open my eyes, the voice near caused them to shoot open.

"Ms. Kagura, are you okay?" It took her voice to remind me that Rin had been kidnapped as well.

As I looked upon her face I could see that she had been relieved to see me awake. _"She's cares too much. She'd probably stress out if a small bug was killed_," I thought as I looked at her. "_She's far too caring for this cruel fate_." It didn't take long before I noticed Kohaku was kneeling next to her. He seemed a little worried about me but just wanted to be with Rin. I let out a small groan in response to her previous question. "I should be okay in just a little bit. As soon as my wounds heal, I'll .." It was then that I looked down upon my body. I had been wounded in my struggle to stay free of Cerberus. I had even suffered a big gash along my abdomen but I couldn't see it because it had been bandaged up.

As though reading my mind, Rin spoke up, "Kohaku fixed your wounds. He said they weren't too bad and you should be fine in no time."

"It was nothing," Kohaku said. "I'm just glad I was able to use some of my training to help someone for once."

Yes the kid was a Demon Slayer but it would go without saying that he had to have some sort of basic knowledge of medicine. "Well kid, you aren't going to hear this again and don't tell anyone I said this, but thank you," I told him. He had been through a hell similar to mine so I knew he needed the reassurance.

"As I said, it was nothing, though I could do nothing for your bindings," Kohaku spoke.

My hands where still bound and of some material I had never seen before. "Don't even think about breaking free. They are of my own special design and are unbreakable. Waste your energy if you see fit but it will not help you."

"Cerberus, you bastard. Fight me on far ground and I'll bury you," I roared at him.

"I do not think so. Not even Naraku could match me. You wouldn't stand a chance," Cerberus laughed in my face.

"You just keep laughing, I'll make sure to do the same for you, when I'm staring at your corpse."

"While I know you don't care about your own safety, you should calm down. Otherwise, I can't guarantee the safety of those two around you."

I wanted to fight him. I wanted to tear him limb from limb but I could do nothing. With my hands tied my powers were practically blocked and at this point all I could do was shoot off my mouth. I wanted to make him as mad as I was. While it helped me cope with the situation it would not help Rin or Kohaku.

"I'm going to look forward to the day you die. Even if I'm not the one to kill you, I'll be sure to spit on your corpse." To dispel more of my anger without getting them harmed I turned around and punched the brick cell wall as hard as I could. I didn't even bother to think about the pain nor did I let it affect me when it came.

"I don't see that day coming any time soon but I'll enjoy seeing you waste away here. Now be a good girl and be quiet," Cerberus said as he walked out of the room.

"Damn, I hate that bastard!" I yelled to no one in particular.

"He does seem awful mean," Rin said.

"I had originally thought he was Naraku returning to get me," Kohaku added.

"Trust me kid, at this point I think you'd rather it be Naraku. This guy is far worse." I knew it wouldn't boost the kid's morale but I didn't want to sugarcoat things either. We were in some deep shit and I don't think they truly realized how bad it was.

"Do you know what is going on?" the boy asked confirming my belief. I nodded. "Would you please tell us? We don't even know why we are here?"

"You're here as bait. You're here to bait Inuyasha and Kagome though I don't know if Cerberus wanted your sister as well," I told the lad and then turned to Rin, "you're here as bait for Sesshomaru."

"Lord Sesshomaru is coming for me?" Rin said with much hope and happiness in her voice.

"Yes, he's even traveling with Inuyasha and Kagome so all we have to do is wait."

"Do you think they stand a chance?" Kohaku asked.

"It will be no problem at all for Lord Sesshomaru." Rin never wavered in her belief to her father-like figure.

"I can't be one hundred percent sure. Cerberus is an unusual detachment of Naraku. One that is gift with more power than even Naraku possessed. I do not know any of his powers. He was careful to not use them against me for fear that others would find out. Without knowing the full nature of your enemy makes the battle far more difficult. I only wish there was more I could do."

"I feel the same way," Kohaku replied. "I was born to be an exterminator yet I've never been able to measure up to that roll."

"I wouldn't say you were born to be an exterminator, you were born into that life but I think you are meant for something different," I said. "Even when Naraku used you I could tell you were too caring of a person for such a cruel fate."

"Please don't pity me," Kohaku said full with pride. "I feel so weak."

"I'm not saying you are. You're good enough with that scythe to protect yourself and those you care for. It takes a lot to kill another being, human, demon, or any other kind," I said and then looked deeply at him. "I envy you for being so caring."

"It's not always such a great characteristic. I couldn't help my sister or protect myself from getting kidnapped," Kohaku said.

"Hey neither could I. You must learn they are fights you can win and there are those you can't help." I sighed. This kid kept on looking at the dark side of things. Maybe I should lighten the mood a little. "You'll see, that caring side of you has its good points. Girls really like a compassionate kind of guy. Though I'm sure you've already noticed that."

Kohaku blushed. "Not… not really," the boy stammered out.

"Trust me, girls really like a considerate, sensitive guy, right Rin?" I asked the girl only to have her blush as well.

"I guess so," came a bare whisper of a response. Her voice returned to normal though as she threw my own question back at me, "Is that why you like Lord Sesshomaru?"

I was caught totally off guard by her response. I guess I shouldn't have played matchmaker – even just a bit. It took a bit for my voice to return, "What are you talking about? Sesshomaru is the most emotionless guy I know. Why in the world would I care about him?"

"You don't mean that Miss Kagura. Lord Sesshomaru may not always show it, okay so he never openly shows his feels but he does care. I know he likes you."

"He doesn't like me. I think you're the only person he cares about." I tried to convince her but I don't think she was buying it.

"Sure he does. Before I don't think Lord Sesshomaru patrolled the Western Lands as much as he does now. I don't think he ever cared about going past the Northern Border, but now we pass near you once a year."

I wanted to just start punching myself in the head. Whether Sesshomaru cared or not, this kid was smart. It's a shame she's spending all her time with that ice block. "I think we've talked enough about what other people think. Unless we can read minds we don't know what they're thinking so let's not speculate." Rin and Kohaku just laughed at my attempt to end the subject. While I still did remember the bad situation we were in, at least I got their minds off it. With them there, I think I could deal with the situation a lot better.

** &#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&  
**

Well that's the newest chapter. Did you enjoy it? I hope so. Well thanks to some reviews I believe there's something I must do. I've gotten a few reviews from people that have read my first few chapters, mentioned that it wasn't that good and then left. Now before you get mad at them, I must say that I agree. After looking at the initial chapters, they do suck. The first few chapters were written in a bit of a rush and not done right. As a matter of fact the first 5 chapters were written just to get the story out of my head. It didn't work and I decided to post the story here and continue writing. So its for that reason that I'll probably be going back and redoing quite a few of the beginning chapters. I don't know how many yet. Probably at least the first 5. I'll probably update those with my next chapter so when I do it I'll let you guys know what chapters were done. So Join me next time for:

**Chapter 60: Five on One?**


	61. Chapter 60 Five on One?

Big surprise everyone, I updated in less than a week. WOW! Here's an even bigger surprise I was able to go back and redo from the Prologue to Chapter 3. Chapters 4&5 and possibly others will come later. There was roughly a page added to each chapter. Now it isn't demanding that you go back and read these. I decided to redo it to make it look right. I expanded on a few issues instead of being so rushed. Though I'm being a bit rushed now. You see in less than an hour after I finish this note, I'll be leaving. I will be going on vacation with my family to Rehoboth Beach (I think I spelled that right). I will not return until Friday so I look forward to all your reviews when I get back. But before I go I got a few quick responses.

Valdimarian - Good to hear that your going to Otakon. If I'm able to get a costume up and going I plan on going as Tenchi in the Lighthawk outfit. If your going as Miroku your taking a risk, you could end up getting slapped. lol

Snow Cat Demon - As you see I updated pretty quick, this time, not always though. About the guy from PA, that is Hiko, I never stated what his relation to anyone is, you'll just have to wait and see. I mentioned he lives in PA only because I enjoy living in PA. I live in NE/Central PA.

Inuyasha's Mustang - Good to hear yet another person from PA. I'm glad your enjoying the story.

Well just about time for me to leave. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer: I don't own IY.**

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 60: Five on One?

The original group of three and now with the added members of Kouga and Ayame had been pretty quiet since they met. A fact that was quickly getting on Kagome's nerves. She could understand the silent treatment from Sesshomaru but the wolf couple hadn't said much since joining. She was starting to wonder if Sesshomaru's comments about not needing them, was causing this silence. Kagome needed to get some speaking going on if only for her peace of mind. She slowed up her pace to fall back to Kouga and Ayame. Inuyasha looked back wondering what she was doing.

Kagome gave Kouga a small push, "Why don't you go talk with Inuyasha while we have a girl talk?" Kagome said.

Kouga looked to Ayame who nodded and didn't seem to mind. "Fine, I'll go talk to dog boy."

Rather than be insulted Inuyasha gave a small laugh, "It's a step up from dog turd so I'll take it."

"Well if you miss that name I can call you by it," Kouga said with a grin.

"Don't even think about it."

Kagome had to laugh at their friendly joking. Six years ago she never would have believed they'd get along for more than two seconds. "So how are things going between you and Kouga?" Kagome asked Ayame.

"They're going good. Can you believe that idiot actually did remember that promise he made me under the Moon's Rainbow?"

"Then why did he say he didn't?"

"He never really told me. And you know, I thought girls were the only people that played hard to get," Ayame said with a smile.

"So what are you two doing at this point in time to become mates?"

"You don't know?" Ayame asked but thought about it for a second, "Yeah I guess you wouldn't. You and Inuyasha went through it without even realizing it. Of course it starts off with getting to know each other and those around them."

"That sounds nice," Kagome added. "I guess its pretty much dating."

"Almost like that human ritual but it just gets a little tougher later. You have to fully place your trust in your future possible mate. While most people do trust others its hard to fully trust them. Everyone has a part of them that they believe only they can trust themselves. Am I making any sense?"

"Yeah I understand what you're saying," Kagome said.

"Well to truly become mates you must overcome this and truly trust your mate. If a couple can overcome this, no sort of deceit will ever break them apart. Through your travels with Inuyasha you two have come to have full faith in one another. I truly believe nothing will ever come between the two of you again."

As Ayame had said that, Kagome perceived a sense of longing from her. "Are you two having trouble with that?"

"Not really. There is no sure fire way to test this until you're practically in a life or death situation. So you see there's still a bit of uncertainty."

"From what you're saying, it sounds more like doubt and if you're doubting Kouga's love and trust in you then wouldn't it be true to say that you're not fully trusting him?" Ayame thought this over as Kagome said it. She just hung her head as she realized Kagome was right. "I'm not saying to give up hope, just try to let go of the doubt and the trust will fill in the hole it leaves behind."

Ayame looked up at Kagome with a huge smile, "Thank you, Kagome."

"Trust me things don't always look like they'll work out but if you stick by it and truly love someone, everything will just fall into place."

&&&&&

The two previous rivals didn't say much at first. They were much more content without saying anything to each other yet having a staring contest out of the corner of there eyes. When both of them failed to see a log in the road ahead of them the contest ended without a winner.

"So how are things going between you and Kagome?" Kouga asked.

"Except for this journey everything was peaceful," Inuyasha said.

"That has to bother you though," Kouga said. Inuyasha looked at his companion with confusion. "Well you're used to all the fighting and moving around constantly. It must have been hard to adapt to living in one place with nothing to fight other than to get your food. Well that and fighting with Kagome."

Inuyasha returned Kouga's grin. "Kagome and I don't fight. As for the peaceful life, I would have agreed with you. I don't think I could have imagined myself going a day without getting into a fight. Or staying in one place for more than a week. Yet once I settled down with Kagome into our house everything just felt right. All my worries about everything went away. Though I will admit there were times when my parents stopped by that I wished it was just us. So how are things with you and Ayame?"

"It's going really well," Kouga said. He reflected inward not knowing if he wanted to go on. It took a bit but his mind was made up, "I've been thinking about asking Ayame to make it formal."

Inuyasha almost stopped dead in his tracks. He'd figured things were going well but he'd never picked that serious of a vibe off his friend. As he looked at Kouga, Inuyasha knew that he was sincere. "Is there a reason you're not? You could have asked her but there's something holding you back, isn't there?"

"Well I'm just wondering if it's too soon or should I wait longer before asking."

"How long ago did you start the process?" Inuyasha asked.

"Three years, 10 months, and 23 days," Kouga replied quickly.

The hanyou almost fell to the ground with that statement. He'd expect some random number, not something exact as that. It took Inuyasha a few minutes before he could even speak again. "Okay a few things, I think you have been together long enough especially since you've at least known each other longer. You have to ask yourself if you're ready to make that next step. If you can live with that you're ready," Inuyasha said. "If you want my opinion, I think you are ready – especially when you're counting days like that!"

"Yeah, I guess you can tell I've been thinking about this a lot lately," Kouga said. "I think I'll ask her when we're finished with this fun adventure."

"Don't sweat it. I'm sure things will go just fine."

"Oh, I think there's a lot of things to sweat about," Cerberus's voice called from around them.

The entire group quickly got into battle ready positions. Sesshomaru already had Toukijin draw. Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga while Kagome held the sword that Midoriko had given her. "Sesshomaru, didn't you sense him."

"No, I didn't. He seems to be able to mask his scent and I was unable to hear his approach thanks to your constant talking," Sesshomaru replied coldly.

"Yes, it's one of my more interesting techniques. For that reason, I don't have to waste any of my power on useless barriers only to have you knock them down like Naraku did," the voice seemed to carry.

"So how about you bring your ass down here so we can make this beating a bit quicker," Kouga yelled.

"Though you were not invited, your presence here does not worry me in the least. In fact I think it will add to the enjoy of this fight,"

"Well see how much you enjoy the fight when all five of us are pounding you into the ground."

"Rest assured, you could have brought everyone you know and I still wouldn't be scared," Cerberus said as his evil laughed echo throughout the area.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Well that's the newest chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I had planned to make it longer and include more stuff but I decided to update the story before I left and put some things off til the next chapter. See you all in about a week. Though join me next time for:

**Chapter 61: Three for the Price of One**


	62. Chapter 61 Three for the Price of One

Once again I know its been a while but what can I say. I write when I write. I'll probably be writing even less after getting a chance to see what this semester is like. For those who are new who haven't read my notes, I'm now a senior in college studying Computer Engineering. Add to that I'm a little behind so I'm taking more classes then I should, so the work is a little heavy right now. With there being only about 2 more chapters and then the Epilogue I hope to get the time to finish this and wrap it up once and for all.

Well before I continue, I've gotten some great reviews lately that definitely need some responding to so I'll start off with that:

**_SunStreak_** - I'm glad you've stuck with my fic and hope you keep with it. --------------------_Congrats. 2 thousandth reviewer._ (I just have to ask why do people keep putting down 20 instead of 2000 (or does ff .net cut zeros)?)

**_Echo Hunter_** - I realize it takes a while to read my story. Truth is I don't think people realize how big the story is if you put it together in one Word file in 12 font Times New Roman (that's how it is on my HDD). As for my writing style, I personally think if I would sit down and revise this whole story, people would think it was by a different person. Whenever I start a story (no matter how much experience I have) the beginning sucks cause I'm too eager to write it and I skip stuff. I should explain more and different parts too. So people who stick with my story realize that as time goes on the style changes to a more steady pace of events. Now these later chapters might fall under the same thing as the first few because I'm almost pulling myself to write this. I hope though that things stay good and every is happy when I finish.

**_StarlightAngelEyes_** - Personally I think I've slightly deviated from the main point of IY's wish but in a way these events are a small result. The main reason I didn't just do another story/spin-off was that I thought this part would be too small for its own story. As for the bringing back the parents and everyone, few people have shown disappointment in the idea but I'm of mixed feelings as well. A lot of times I'm the kind of guy that tries to keep everyone happy no matter how unrealistic it is. This story is like that. It sort of fulfills my wanting to keep everyone alive, even though we know they won't be coming back in the anime. So in that sense I still like this story and will keep with it.

**_InuKag101_** - You say that because Naraku is gone that Kagura should be dead (I think your also add the Shikon Jewel into this equation). Have you seen the 2nd movie? Small spoiler: Naraku dies for a little bit, or at least hides so that its like he'd dead (Miroku's wind tunnel disappears) and Kagura and Kanna are still alive. I don't think they have the jewel shards with them either. Kagura is a detachment of Naraku but a separate being none the less (the Shikon Jewel just gave Naraku the power to do this). In the anime, Kagura wants Naraku dead so she can live freely, not die as soon as he does. So while she was part of Naraku, she is no longer.

**_RoseWolf_** - You say you like the Sess/Kagura. Check out "Call Me Tomorrow" by TailFluffGirl (this was one of my recommendations). This is just a Sess/Kagura story. Probably the best one.

**_Tycoon Runner_** - 10 hours! Didn't think it took that long but damn! Also I'd love to write original books and I have the ideas but I just get bored too easily. Hopefully one day I will.

**_Valdimarian _**- I looked for you bud but I couldn't find you. Too many Miroku's. I might have seen you and not realized it. I didn't get a chance to cosplay cause it was too much to pull off in a short amount of time. Hopefully next year.

**_Inu-Hakan the lord of the immortal fire _** - Since I updated in 2 months the demon tomatoes have been given a Return to Sender note but by the time you read this it will be too late.

**_Aclahayr_** - To be honest your review was the most fun. So let's discuss what you had to say (this is not meant in a mean way, in fact its meant to keep the mood light). First off I don't think it says anywhere that demons are immortal (though they could be and I"m not disputing this) no where does it say that can't change. Even if someone would be immortal they can change. If you look at how IY acted as a kid compared with him in the series there's a total difference. Also if you look at how he acted at the beginning of the series and way later on you'll see he's changed quite a bit. Even Sesshomaru changed from when he first showed up, I think Rin has had that effect on him. If you look throughout the series, there are times when IY actually does use his brain in battle (this is just few and far between). Lastly there is the idea of Greek Mythology, the Japanese people weren't cut off from everyone in the world. I didn't realize it until recently but Christianity actually made its way over to Feudal Japan. It was practically outlawed but it made its way there. Now I'm not saying that the Japanese people learned about Greek mythology early on but I think there is definitely a possibility that it made its way there.

**_Saiko Fluffy_** - You thought the last chapter was an evil cliffhanger. You won't like me for this one either, and you'll hate me next chapter.

Well I think I'm done reviews. For those who aren't sure of the Sess/Kagura pairing check this site out: http/ www. geocities. com/ sesskagura/ (I found this site thanks to TailFluffGirl's story "Call Me Tomorrow" geez, can I plug that story any more. What can I say I really like it and I'm waiting for her to update.)

Well I think its about time to begin. Enjoy and here's a note I can't even afford this www. animenewsnetwork. com/article.php?id7393 so there's no way I can afford the IY franchise.

**A Wish From the Heart**

**Chapter 61: Three for the Price of One**

"Don't even think for a second that we're scared of you," Kouga yelled.

"Oh but you should be. You have no idea the power you are up against," Cerberus warned.

"Yeah, I'm sure. That's why you ran away after each encounter you had with us," Inuyasha yelled.

"You don't get it do you. It was bait to lure you here. I will fight you on my terms on my home ground."

"You fail to notice the disadvantage in this plan," Sesshomaru said coolly. "In baiting us to come here, you have outnumbered yourself."

"I am not worried in the least," Cerberus said with a grin. "In fact, what I've done is given myself a small challenge. I wouldn't have even called it that had you not brought along two more. Though I don't know how much help they'll be to you."

"What was that?" Ayame yelled. "You'll have your hands full with us."

"I'd say it about time you back up those words," Cerberus said as a stream of miasma shot out of the forest and struck Ayame. Kouga quickly acted and pulled her from the barrage before she was hit too hard. Inuyasha swiftly advanced on the origin of the miasma only to find the spot bare.

Cerberus just laughed. He knew that within the thicket of the forest he could easily move around and keep himself hidden from his attackers. Inuyasha had no warning as an entire tree trunk came flying at him from his right side. Kagome acted quickly and stepped in the way, slicing the tree in half with her sword.

"Thanks," Inuyasha replied as kept his senses on full alert looking for Cerberus.

"You're welcome."

"This is touching," Cerberus said with a laugh. "I'll make sure you two die together as well." A jet of flames came at the couple. Inuyasha and Kagome hurriedly separated to avoid the blaze. Sesshomaru used his brother's peril to advance on their enemy slashing through the brush with Toukijin. His sword hit only trees and other plants as another stream of miasma attacked from almost behind him.

Sesshomaru avoided the poison cloud and regrouped with the others. "We have to be careful. This guy knows how to teleport and he's using that against us," Inuyasha said. He then turned to Ayame, "Kagome, take Ayame and go free Kohaku and the others, that way at least they'll be safe."

"Will you guys be okay without us?" Ayame asked.

"Are you trying to say I will lose to this cretin," Sesshomaru asked.

"Sesshomaru is right," Kouga said, "We won't lose to this dirtbag. We'll have him beat by the time you get back."

"We won't be long," Kagome said. "Let's go, Ayame." With nothing more holding them back, the two girls took off.

_**&&&&&**_

Kagura felt weird. She didn't know what was wrong but she knew that she didn't feel right. She could feel herself get light headed. What ever was the matter, she knew it had something to do with the bonds which held her so tight. On looking, she could see that Rin and Kohaku were tied together using regular rope yet her bindings were different. Kagura struggled against them, trying to break them or slip her way out.

"What's wrong, Miss Kagura?" Rin asked as she saw the woman tussling with her shackles.

As she continued to struggle, Kagura continued to get weaker. It was then that she realized what was going on. The bonds were sapping her strength. "Damnit these things are sucking my power out of me." Rin and Kohaku rushed over to her but all they could do was pull on the bindings but it did nothing to help. Kohaku looked around but could see nothing with which to help.

"There's got to be something we can do to help," Rin shrieked as tears formed in her eyes.

"There's nothing you can do," Kagura said with a calm voice. She knew there was nothing she could do to stop the power drain but at least this way she wasn't worrying the kids too much. "I'll hold out as long as I can. Hopefully help will arrive," even as she said that she knew it was unlikely.

"Lord Sesshomaru will come. I know he will," Rin stood up. "Lord Sesshomaru! Please come, we need your help!" She prayed that her shouts would reach the taiyoukai.

"Well, we're not Sesshomaru, but where here to help," Kagome said from the end of the hall along with Ayame.

"Kagome, Miss Kagura needs help," Kohaku told her.

"Okay, you kids stand back," Ayame warned. As soon as they were clear, she kicked the door right off its hinges. Both of them went to Kagura, "now what's wrong with you. Ahh!" she screamed as soon as she touched Kagura's bonds.

"I don't know what Cerberus did but they seem to draw in demon power. They've been draining my power but when the kids touched them it didn't do anything."

"So it only reacts to youkai. Let's see how it likes me," Kagome said as she grabbed ahold of the bands. Kagome gritted her teeth as she could feel a small stinging but didn't let go. The shackles seem to give off a searing sound before the ominous glow that surrounded them died away. "That should do it. Now keep your arms behind your back." Kagome pulled her sword and with precision cut the bonds that held the wind sorceress.

"What did you do to them?" Kagura asked.

"I purify them. Since it seemed to be endowed with some demonic ability I figured it wouldn't react good to miko energy," Kagome said with a smirk. "Now how are, can you walk?"

"I'm still a little light headed but I can manage," Kagura put her hand to the nearby wall and slowly pulled herself up. As she got there she found her legs were still too weak as they gave out on her. Rin and Kohaku acted quickly and caught her. "Okay so maybe I can't walk just yet. Give me a couple minutes and I'll be fine."

"Kagome, don't worry about us," Kohaku said. "Rin and I will get Miss Kagura to safety."

"Good, but first we should get out of this horrible jail. Follow us," Kagome said as her and Ayame led the way.

Kagura helped the best she could as Rin and Kohaku practically carried her out. She just smiled at the two teenagers. "_To think, I wanted to help them escape and here they are dragging my ass. Oh how I have fallen when two kids are helping me_," Kagura thought to herself. "_I wonder what Sesshomaru would think if he saw me now? I'm not even strong enough to walk by myself. Damnit, why am I thinking of him? Like I give a damn as to what he thinks of me._"

"Miss Kagura?" Rin called for the 3rd time.

"Sorry Rin, what were you saying?" Kagura asked as she was pulled from her internal conversation.

"Can you stand, now?"

Kagura could feel the strength back in her body. She stood on her own power once again. She wasn't sure whether her strength had just came back from being drawn out of her or it was the adrenaline running through her from her inner struggle. She may not have been 100 percent but she was in good condition. "I'm feeling fine. Thanks for you help." She turned to thank Kagome and for the first time noticed that she was gone. "Where did Kagome go?"

"We split up with them when we got outside," Kohaku said. "They headed back to help Inuyasha and the others. We brought you out here. Hopefully we're far enough away from the battle."

"_Good luck. You're all going to need it_," Kagura thought to herself.

_**&&&&&**_

Kagome and Ayame stood at the edge of Cerberus' hideout. Unlike Naraku who usually kept to large mansions, Cerberus was much happier in a small inconspicuous building. Kagome looked on at the forest that surrounded it. With the thickness of it, you would never know the hideaway was their.

"Kagome why are we stopped? Even with the denseness of the forest I can smell where they are. We have to get going to help them."

"It will be more help if I can lock down exactly where Cerberus is," Kagome said. "When we were in the forest before he kept jumping around and spreading out his energy so that I couldn't get a lock on him. If I can pin him down from here, I could continue to follow him."

"Great, but what's taking so long?"

"It was bad before because Cerberus' energy was like a soup in there. Any you can't navigate something when you're drowning in it. I should be able to lock it down from here but I can't seem to do it."

"Why not?"

"Because it's still like a soup. I can't seem to pin down the power."

"Well if he's spreading out his power it has to come from somewhere. Look for the biggest concentration."

"It's not that easy. It's like …" Kagome stopped in her tracks.

"What's up?" Ayame asked.

"Give me a few more seconds," Kagome said as Ayame could feel the power Kagome gave off. Kagome came back to her sense with an even more worried look. "Let's go Ayame. Things just got a lot worse." With that Kagome took off running into the forest.

"Hey, wait for me."

_**&&&&&**_

"I'm getting pissed off," Inuyasha said breathing heavy. They had struck at Cerberus constantly but they weren't getting anywhere.

"I wish you'd sit still you bastard," Kouga yelled. They had caught glimpses of their enemy but it didn't last long as he disappeared and attacked from behind them.

"I am getting tired of this miscreant's games." Sesshomaru had barely been able to lay a hand on him. Cerberus seemed to possess incredible speed along with various powers.

"Get all the complaints out now, because you'll be dying shortly." Suddenly the ground under Inuyasha and the others started to cave in. The land around them built up trying to lock them in.

Sesshomaru wasted no time in obliterating all the earth before it had a chance to trap them. "Damnit this nature freak is getting on my nerves," Inuyasha said. Cerberus had used nature based attacks at them. He had even thrown a few of Kagura's wind attacks at them.

"Inuyasha, Sesshomaru, Kouga split up," Kagome yelled as she finally caught sight of them.

"Are you kidding, Kagome?" Inuyasha yelled. "How will splitting up help us?"

"I forgot. Cerberus isn't just a hound of Hell. He's three headed," Kagome yelled.

"What!" Kouga replied.

"He can't teleport, there's been three of them all this time!" Kagome told him.

**_&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&_**

Ahh the big secret is out. Few people questioned why I called the villain Cerberus, well now you know. Dark Inu Fan I think you were the only person to ask: he had 3 heads didn't he? Congrats even if you didn't realize it you had figured out my foreshadowing. Well while you're all waiting for me to update check out this story:

_**Yume no Unmei**_ (that means Dreams of Fate) - by _Chiisana _ s/600133/1/ - One of my old fun stories to read.

Join me next time for:

**Chapter 62: The Price of Victory**

(I didn't think the cliffhanger was bad enough, I had to leave you with such a tempting title too)


	63. Chapter 62 The Price of Victory

Wow, an update that you didn't have to wait 1-2 months for, cool huh? Yeah I wanted to get this out a little sooner but school kind of hammered me for the last 2 weeks (and this week doesn't look to pretty either). There was also the Career Fair this past week which was really fun to go to. Got to meet a lot of companies that I might work for in the future. But we'll talk later about who I'm going to sell my soul to when I graduate. We have more important things to talk about, like this story. I'd like to remind everyone that not counting this chapter there is going to be one more chapter and then the epilogue. At that point this story will be over. I won't be dragging it out anymore, I don't see a reason to, no more ideas to write, and it will be about time as well. Now for some fun, review responses

**_Dragon Man 180_** - You definitely thought about the 3 man combo a bit, good job. You'll just have to wait and see what their connection is.

**_Inuyasha's Mustang_** - Freshman in HS, hell I wish I was back there, a hell of a lot less work. Heck I'd love to be a freshman in college again, the amount of work you get as a senior is so much more.

**_Valdimarian_** - Funny thing is, I think I saw the same guy in a Tenchi outfit you did. I only saw 1 or 2 Tenchi's at all of Otakon. I remember there was one carrying a sign that said looking for a Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, and Mihoshi or other girls in groups of 4. I wanna know if he had any success or not.

**_Animeluvr630937_** - I have no idea how I've kept this story going so long. It was never supposed to be like this, though if you want a longer one, check out Moonsilver's _Source of Magic_. That has about 90 chapters (though I have her beat in word count).

**_Selina_** - Thank you for the three reviews. You don't have to worry, I"m updating now.

_**another fan**_ - make this story really long. I'm already up to 62 chapters, what do you consider really long?

**_YuniX-2_** - Thank you for your continued perseverance in reading this story. Glad you caught up so quick. As for the recommendations about reading another story, they're not meant to be a nuisance, instead they're there so people can read another good story while waiting for me to update. Hell that's where I learned of some really good stories myself.

Okay now onto my to favorite review that have to be taken care of:

**_tabycat_** - Part of me hates you so much for telling me that. Why did you have to tell me something so depressing? At the same time I have to thank you, I really don't read the manga so I never would have learned that. I guess I'll have to continue watching the anime (as they continue it in movies and OVAs) and hope that the same thing doesn't happen there. Also with the way Rumiko deals with death (need I bring up the subject of Kikyo), I have small hopes that it is only a temporary setback. Have to wait and see.

**_SereneDolphin_** - Thank you very much for you long and thought out review. It was refreshing to read your comments on everything. I'm glad you liked Tai (I had so much fun thinking him up). As for writing a long story, this one has really tested my patience, resolve, and my sanity. I'm just glad there are people here to read it and that makes this all worth while.

Now onto the chapter, which I might add is super-sized this time around (about 2-3 times as big as normal). PS - I don't own IY

A Wish From the Heart

Chapter 62: The Price of Victory

"I forgot. Cerberus isn't just a hound of Hell. He's three headed," Kagome yelled.

"What!" Kouga replied.

"He can't teleport, there's been three of them all this time!" Kagome told him.

"HA HA HA HA HA!" Cerberus laughed. "It took you this long to figure it out. It doesn't matter. You'll still die."

"Its time to put an end to your games," Sesshomaru said. "Souryuuha!" With a single swing of his sword, Sesshomaru destroyed a third of the forest around them.

"I get it. He won't have a place to hide," Inuyasha said. "Kaze no Kizu!" The Windscar ripped even more of the forest apart barely leaving Cerberus with a place to hide.

"You guys aren't playing nice," their enemy said as he walked slowly out of the remaining forest.

"Yeah that was mean," the same voice came as the person shoved away some fallen tries that Sesshomaru destroyed.

"I think its time we got serious," the third came from Inuyasha's demolition area.

"Everyone pick a partner," Kouga said charging at the 1st Cerberus. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha picked their opponents respectively.

"Do you really think you can beat me, wolf? The three of you couldn't beat us and you think you can handle me by yourself?"

"Not by himself." Cerberus only heard Ayame's words as she slammed into him from behind sending him directly towards Kouga, who was ready for him. Before Cerberus could do anything, Kouga gave a hard uppercut sending him reeling into the air. Not wasting any time, Ayame threw multiple razor leaves at Cerberus tearing at him where she could.

Cerberus twisted and pushed himself away from the duo landing safely. Kouga charged at him but Cerberus was ready this time. A wall of rock ripped from the ground, and the wolf demon couldn't slow down in time.

"Kouga!" Ayame yelled. She kept her eyes focused forward and didn't see the tree as it collapsed and fell right towards her.

&&&&&

Inuyasha just stared his opponent down. He wasn't in a big hurry. He had the time and he would use it to his advantage. He could see the 2nd split of Cerberus getting impatient.

"Too tired to come at me?" his enemy asked.

"Nah, I'm waiting for you," Inuyasha called back confidently.

"I can understand. You haven't really fought for 5 years and you're out of practice. You looking for any way out," Cerberus boasted.

"Ohh, I've kept up pretty well," Inuyasha said. "I've got a good sparring partner."

Cerberus moved with blinding speed to directly behind Inuyasha, "Too bad that won't help you now." Cerberus' hands transformed into blade claws as he swung them at the hanyou. Inuyasha made no movement to dodge though.

"I think I will help him," came from behind Cerberus as he felt a sword slice along his back. He quickly jumped away but not before getting caught by Inuyasha's claws along his chest. "If you must know, my mate and I train every day for hours. We fight even better together," Kagome said with a grin and full of assurance.

"You might have had the upper hand when it was just me, but now you don't stand a chance," Inuyasha continued.

"Well you're just going to have to suffer with disappointment," Cerberus said and with a single swish of his hand, blades went flying towards the couple.

Inuyasha used Tetsusaiga to block them while Kagome used a barrier to protect herself. "I was wondering the purpose of those weird restraints," Kagome said with a small laugh. "It wasn't just draining Kagura's power it was transferring it to you, wasn't it?" Cerberus gave no response. "You won't be doing much more of that attack since I removed the bonds already, besides your attack is a poor substitute for Kagura's. Her's are far quicker and deadlier."

"It doesn't matter, she is far weaker than me," Cerberus boasted. "You'll get to see exactly how deadly my attacks are." From twenty five feet away, Cerberus stretched his arms towards the couple.

"Give me a break," Inuyasha said easily jumping a few feet from the arms as they passed by him. "You'll have to do better than…" Inuyasha stopped in mid taunt as he felt his arm and side pierced. At the same time, Kagome let out a scream to pain. He looked over and saw spikes had extended from the attacking arms. Kagome was pinned to a tree by a spike through her shoulder. Inuyasha tried to move to her but the skewers, which he had forgotten about pushed him further away from her.

"Too bad you under estimated me," Cerberus said to the trapped miko, "Now die!" With that he sent another spike hurtling towards her unprotected midsection.

&&&&&

Sesshomaru looked on at his opponent. "To think, I have to fight such a weakling."

"I am sorry you disapprove, Lord Sesshomaru," Cerberus said with disrespect in his voice, "I hope that I can provide you with enough enjoyment."

"See that you do and I will make you death quick and painless," Sesshomaru replied.

Before he even blinked Cerberus was behind him, "Will you not defend yourself?"

"You moved, nothing more. I will not waste my energy to defend against an attack that is nonexistent." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Sesshomaru moved behind the demon and struck at him with his energy whip.

Cerberus managed to only get grazed on the arm and chest as he flew back from the attack. "You been so kind as to show me how to attack, can you show me how to defend?" Cerberus threw a simple wave of energy at the demon lord, who wasted very little energy to sidestep it but Cerberus followed up with a sharp blade he pulled out of his body.

Sesshomaru raised Toukijin out from his belt to block the assault. "I think you just might provide me with a worthy challenge."

"Well then let's just keep the fun rolling," Cerberus said as he opened his mouth wide. Naraku's usual miasma started streaming out. The fog had a mind of its own as it carefully made a 20 foot circle around Sesshomaru be swarming in and covering all around the demon lord. "I'm sure you realized that the miasma that Naraku used to use was poisonous," Cerberus commented. "Of course, you're far too strong to have that poison mean anything to you and that was one of Naraku's weak points. His miasma was only good as a covering and a low level poison but you see mine is far more deadly."

Cerberus could still sense Sesshomaru within the mist. It was another part of himself so it was easy to tell. "You see my miasma is more than just a poison, it's a conduit for my power," with a small twitch Cerberus let his energy run through the sphere of dark fog. "I'm sure you just felt a small shock, I could turn this entire thing into a giant electric ball but…"

"Are you about done, I'm getting bored again," Sesshomaru warned as he made a motion as to get ready to leave.

"Yes well as I was saying," Cerberus continued. "I could turn that entire dome into a giant electric ball but I'd rather set it ablaze," and without warning the entire area with miasma exploded in a violent reaction.

&&&&&

"Kouga!" Ayame yelled and ran towards her mate as she watched him crash into the earth wall due to his momentum. Just as she got halfway, she heard a crash from behind her. Thinking it was Cerberus she quickly turned around to see a tree had fallen right where she had been standing. Inside she blew a sigh of relief.

"You know that was supposed to hit you." In her distraction, Cerberus had manage to get right behind her. She turned around just in time for him to grab her by her neck and lift. "I guess I'll just have to be more thorough." While she tried to fight his grip, she couldn't get loose. He didn't waste anytime in smashing her into a nearby tree. Ayame had no time to catch her breath as she was quickly smashed into another and another. It was finally finished when he threw her head first and another tree.

Ayame couldn't even see straight to know that she was headed to a tree. All she knew was that in a bit she found herself carefully pulled out of the air and was set down softly on the ground. "Hey are you okay? Say something."

"Uhhh," she groaned as her eyesight started to return to her and she could see Kouga looking down at her with worry written all over his face. "Kouga?"

"You can fight better than that I know you can," the wolf leader all but yelled at her. "Just stay here for now while I take care of him." The wolf leader then turned to his opponent. "Prepare to eat dirt, bastard."

"I'll skip that meal but you can tell me what its like," Cerberus said. He raised his fist as they started to glow. "If you're done pampering the girl we can get down to business."

Kouga didn't even bother with a retort, he just dashed at Cerberus and threw a flurry of punches. Unfortunately almost none of them landed as Cerberus moved quickly to dodge, those that landed seemed to have no effect. After giving Kouga a head start in attacking, Cerberus returned the favor connecting with each and every punch. Unfortunately Kouga could feel that they were no normal punches. Instead Cerberus was feed electric energy through his fists. Each attacks sent jolt after jolt through Kouga's already battered body. Cerberus finished with an uppercut that sent the equivalent of a small lightning bolt shooting through the wolf demon's body.

"Let him alone," Ayame yelled as she flings her razor leaves at Cerberus. He sidestepped them with ease but the one managed to catch his hair.

"You know I liked my hair the way it was and you went and messed it up," Cerberus said with a hint of actual anger in his voice.

"Too bad," Ayame yelled back. "Go to hell!"

"You first," Cerberus said as he punched the ground. A fissure broke all the way up to where Ayame stood. The female wolf demon had no time to more as the fissure seemed to become a giant rupture in only a matter of seconds.

"Ayame!" Kouga yelled as he wasted no time in running straight down the gorge after her.

The girl had nothing to grab a hold of as she fell. She also carried no weapons or anything that could change her course straight to the nightmare that awaited her. She could her the wails of the souls that were below her. They anticipated her arrival. "_Please Kouga, save me,_" she wished to herself. She wanted to do more to save herself but she knew her situation and all she could do was trust her lover.

As if answering her prayers, Kouga leapt from the one side of the gorge, grabbed her in mid air before grabbing ahold of the other side.

"Thanks…." Ayame said just as the walls of the chasm started to close.

"Save your thanks we have to get out of here," Kouga said as he quickly made break for the top with Ayame in tow.

"Ha ha ha, you may have caught her but I'll make sure you stay trapped down there," Cerberus laughed from the top. The walls continued to close at a faster pace.

"Damnit," Kouga cursed as he continued he his progress to the top as fast as he could but even he knew it wasn't enough. With only a few feet opening left, Kouga grabbed onto Ayame's arm and flung her up as far as he could. In doing so he himself lost his footing on the wall and fell down.

"KOUGA!" Ayame screamed as she flew threw the air and landed on the ground just as it closed back up.

&&&&&

"Now die!" Cerberus said as he sent a long deadly spike towards Kagome's unprotected midsection.

Inuyasha tried to get to Kagome but it was no use. He even allowed the thorns to dig further into him so as he could get closer to his mate but it wasn't close enough. "Kagome!"

The spikes, which had been going at full speed to impale Kagome stopped about a inch from her body. "Inuyasha, I think you worry too much," Kagome said simply. She turned to their demon foe. "Did you forget that I'm a miko?"

"Oh I remember well enough from our first meeting," Cerberus said.

"Oh, then you should remember what I can do to you," Kagome advised him as flexed her miko energy and flung away the spikes that kept hold of her.

"I underestimated you back then, don't think for a second I'll let you trap me again," Cerberus said as he quickly withdrew his spikes from Kagome, dropping her to the ground. "Here you can have this guy," Cerberus said as he hurled Inuyasha at Kagome before extracting his spikes from the dog demon.

Kagome caught her mate, alright, and then the tree behind her caught them both. "Inuyasha, you're heavy. I think you've been putting on a bit of weight," Kagome groaned out.

"Well sorry for liking your cooking," Inuyasha said as got off of her.

"I should make you cook some more, that way I know you won't be eating as much," Kagome replied.

"But my cooking sucks," Inuyasha complained.

"That's the whole point," Kagome said. "Well let's finish up here so we can get something to eat."

"You hear that," Inuyasha said addressing Cerberus, "The sooner I put you down the sooner I get some good food."

"Oh, well if that's the case why don't I just lie down and die for you," Cerberus mocked back.

"No need, I like to get a good workout before my meal," Inuyasha said charging at Cerberus. Just before reaching his opponent, Inuyasha swung Tetsusaiga, "KAZE NO KIZU!"

Cerberus was taken surprise by Inuyasha's quick change of pace. He pulled up much of the earth around his feet to block the attack but still some of the assault struck him in the shoulder. Cerberus clutched his injury in pain. "Damn you."

"If you didn't like that, wait until you feel this." Like twice long before, the Tetsusaiga pulsed out a wave of energy.

Cerberus felt the wave of energy hit him as paralysis overtook his body. "I have heard of this attack, the one you defeated Naraku with. My body may be immobilized for now but I can easily overcome this. Besides without your friends nearby you attack won't be enough to kill me."

"That's why it's a slight variation," Kagome said as she stepped beside Inuyasha, and using the same move they did to finally kill Kitiara, she made a downward strike while her mate made a horizontal one. The slices of energy combined together and struck forward slicing through Cerberus.

With his final breath's, Cerberus cursed at them, "This won't be the end, you'll see." Once cut into four pieces, the demon's body turned to a dark mist and blew away with the wind.

&&&&&

"KOUGA!" Ayame yelled as she pounded the ground that had fused back together, trapping Kouga. Tears flowed freely from the girl's eyes. "It's all my fault. If only I had fought smarter and better, you wouldn't have had to save me," Ayame cried out. "It should be me trapped down there in that underworld."

"Damn you cry too much," Cerberus said from directly behind her. "If you love him that much, don't worry. You'll be joining him soon."

Ayame didn't care what happened to her. She had loved Kouga dearly even if it didn't show at times. She knew she couldn't continue on without him. He was part of her reason for living. He was part of her. He was her …

"Don't you touch my mate!" a voice screamed as a hand sprung up from the ground and grabbed ahold of Cerberus's ankle. Kouga continued on his jump out of the ground not letting go of Cerberus. The wolf demon swung his opponent directly into the ground. Cerberus felt the breath knocked out but that didn't stop Kouga.

"Kouga," Ayame said in relief.

Kouga continued to swing Cerberus directly into a tree smashing it in half. "Ayame go high," Kouga said as he smashed Cerberus into the ground one more time for good measure.

As Kouga said, Ayame jumped high into the air to intercept their foe as Kouga sent him her way. Ayame landed a few kicks into his stomach before grabbing him and hurtling him down onto the tree that had been recently broken. As Ayame landed onto the ground next to Kouga, she watched as Cerberus was impaled by the tree.

"Things won't change. You will die," Cerberus said before the two wolf demons landed final kicks to the detachment's head. The two lovers watched as their dead opponent's body melted away into a dark mist before flying away.

"Kouga, I'm so sorry," Ayame said apologizing. "If only…"

"You did nothing wrong," Kouga said stopping her. "Mates are supposed to be there for one another. And when they do they don't regret doing anything for the other."

"You're right, I'll be there for you, always," Ayame promised him.

"Ayame, for this life and the next, will you be my mate?" Kouga asked. Ayame's eye's filled with tears for the second time. She jumped onto Kouga with no warning. "Should I take that as a yes?"

"Of course you loveable fool," Ayame all but screamed as she continued to hug the life out of him.

&&&&&

Cerberus watched as the ball of flame burned bright with Sesshomaru inside of it. "Do you still think I'm boring?" Cerberus yelled to the inside of the flaming sphere.

"To a certain extent, yes," Sesshomaru answered from the interior of the ball. "You're all talk and you have a few flashy tricks, nothing else." With that the demon lord swung Toukijin clearing himself a path out of the flame and sending air pressure spikes directly at Cerberus. There was no warning as Cerberus was struck by the deadly pins and needles. He also had no warning against Sesshomaru's follow-up attack which landed a punch right in his jaw.

Cerberus went reeling from the attack. As he laid on the ground, he clutch his mouth in pain, "Don't think I'm finished yet. You're about to see my true power," Cerberus gloated.

"It doesn't help to lie to yourself before you die," Sesshomaru said and without another word swung Toukijin at the demon on the ground. Right before the sword was about to cut into the demon, dark miasma flew around him and acted like a shield bounce the sword away.

"Ha ha ha, it seems your companions were able to defeat my other parts but it didn't help," Cerberus gloated as he slowly stood up. "You're idea of divide and conquer has worked against you. When one of us die, their power is transferred to the remaining parts. It seems they were both killed and their power has come back to me. If you'd like I could split off again and you could try fighting all three of us."

"Would I have to be bored three times worse?" Sesshomaru asked. "The fact that you have more power now makes no difference. I'll still kill you."

"Do you have any idea the power I possess now?" Cerberus let his power ripple out. Destroying nearby trees and tearing up the ground, yet the demon lord was still unimpressed.

"Ahhh," came a scream from the nearby forest. Both demons looked over and saw Rin lying on the ground.

"_Damnit, this battle has gone on too long_," Sesshomaru thought to himself.

Rin let out another scream as she tried to run away but found her feet anchor to the ground by a set of roots. "You won't be getting away that easily," Cerberus laughed. "You were suppose to die later but I think you can die right now." With a mere thought he created a set of 5 ice spears and sent the racing at the young terrified teenager.

Sesshomaru moved quickly to protect his ward but found his path swiftly blocked. "I don't think so," Cerberus said as he collided with the taiyoukai sending him careening off course and out of range of the girl.

&&&&&

Rin, who had closed her eyes when she saw the attack directed at her, slowly opened them. This did nothing to help as all she saw was darkness. The only thing that surprised her was that she didn't feel cold, in fact, she felt warm.

"Are…you… alright?" a slow stuttering voice came. Rin recognized the voice. As she pulled her head away from his chest Rin could see Kohaku shielding her. "I didn't … want you to … get hurt," he stuttered out more.

Rin could only nod her head in reply. The boy had protected her at the cost of his own life. "Ko…"

"Are both of you unhurt?" came another voice. Rin poked out and could see Kagura barely standing in front of Kohaku. "Well are you?"

"I'm okay," Rin said.

Kohaku looked himself over. He hadn't even been thinking when he protected Rin. The pain had never even registered in his mind. He had just accepted the fact that he would probably die protecting her and never realized that he was never hit. "I don't have any injuries."

"Well that's good," Kagura said as she collapsed to her knees. She pushed her hand onto her chest to stop the bleeding but it wasn't stopping.

"Miss Kagura, we have to get you out of here, so that we can tend to your wounds," Rin said refusing to accept the obvious.

"No can do kid. You know as well as I that there's no getting up from this one."

"You can't die. Lord Sesshomaru can do something, I'm sure of it," Rin said

"Not right now he can't. Not with Cerberus still there," Kagura said as they watched the two exchange blows. "Kohaku, get her out of here, I don't care if you have to drag her. Just make sure you protect her."

"I will. Thank you, Miss Kagura. I was willing to die before," Kohaku said honestly.

"And when you feel that special about someone, that's worth protecting," Kagura said. "_I'm glad you two are safe_."

Rin couldn't even bare a thank you as Kohaku pulled her away. Rin didn't want to leave the wind sorceress there.

Kagura talked in a small whisper that almost no one could hear but that didn't matter to her. She only intended for one person to hear her. "I'm sorry to disappoint you yet again. It seems I wasn't strong enough to make it through this battle. Doesn't matter to me, maybe I was too weak to see this battle through, but for some reason its comforting to know you're here when I die. My death is worth something. I was able to protect people worth protecting but that's not all," Kagura said as she slowly pulled a small object out of her hair. "I guess you could say its my gift to you before I go, just do yourself a favor, don't get caught by it."

Kagura opened the small fan that she had kept hidden within her hair. She channeled all her remaining energy including her life energy into the fan. With the last of her effort she swung the fan towards Cerberus, "FUUJIN NO MAI (DANCE OF BLADES)!" she screamed as the attacked roared towards the demon. "Now die, you bastard." And with that Kagura landed on the ground, dead.

**_ &#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#_**

Didn't I make a comment last time about people that hated cliff hangers were going to despise me once again? **_Tabycat_**, I find it kind of interesting what you pointed out and what I had planned. You must have been psychic. Well I wish there was more I could say here but I think I'd rather run for my life at this point (well that and get some sleep finally, its 6:30 AM and I haven't slept yet)

Join me next time for:

**Chapter 63: Loose Ends** (I really wanted to call it Life for a Life, but this one sounds better, even though it isn't as suspenseful)

PS - I"m really getting pissed at fanfiction(.)net cause they keep removing a bunch of my punctuation. Anyone else getting mad at this?


	64. Chapter 63 Loose Ends

As I mentioned before, this will be the last regular chapter. After this will be the epilogue. Once again I apologize for the long update. In the interim, I've managed to build (in a simulation) a Program counter, ROM, RAM, and 2 Simple Microcontrollers. Yes being a senior in Computer Engineering is fun. BTW, all those things were built in only 1 class. So I've had work from 5 other classes to keep me busy as well. Oh yeah, I also had to re-format my computer and lost 60 GB of data in the process (at least Windows lost it for about a day), it came back only some of it was corrupt. One of the things was this story, luckily I had multiple copies. Anyone want to trade places?

Back on topic, I'd like to remind people that the whole point of this added section to my story was not to go on and on about Kagura and Sess's relationship. It was meant to show you how things even could start. A byproduct of me doing this part is also the start of Rin and Kohaku's relationship as well as the Kouga-Ayame's. Now for review responses:

**_INUFAN123-4_ -** **he's back. I'll let you see what he's got to say again.** sldyfsajftksfkssvdsfdkfdjgfryilzkrusdfkvcsdsudsskfjghudgdsgsdlfg,safdkghsadgsd,fadslsdhsvshvdhvkdvhsdfhsfdssldhbsckxzkvds,vn.xzmcjvmcjxkjvcdgdfngfdkjglv.zuvfdzvn.zuvfdivzdsjgfdlkbfdubjxzjvdufghjdofv,xcv,xc.vzkvjlvzoivjblxdfgfdglkfdxgfdxkvfvlfdvlvflfkz.  
THAT IS JUST HOW YOUR STORY SOUNDS TO ME.  
THIS STORY IS SO STUPID THAT MEANS THE PERSON WHO WROTE IT IS SUPTID, WHICH MEANS THAT YOU ARE A DUMBF&&&.  
AND I WILL GLADLY SAY F&&& YOU B&&&&.  
OH, BUT THERE IS ONE THING I LIKE ABOUT YOU'RE STORY, THE FONT.I LIKE THE FONT.   
WELL F&&& YOU OH AND HAVE A NICE DAY, I HOPE THIS WAS HELPFUL DUMBA$$.  
I'LL BE WRITING ON YOUR NEXT CHAP.  
HOPE THERE IS IMPROVEMENT.  
BYE-BYE!

**Response **- give me a second, I have to stop laughing... HA. Ok, I'm through that. His first thing was great, like a 2 year old typing on the screen. BTW, I've only edited the curses, so you can see that our friend INUFAN hasn't learned to spell yet. I also find it funny he'd call me a witch (replace w with b). Did he miss the note, that I'm a guy? I'd be a bastard. I'm glad he likes the font, though it really doesn't matter cause that's up to Fanfiction(.)net. I could write this story in the weirdest font I could find and they'd override it. It's also fun that he cursed at me, only 7 year old get that mad over a story and would curse that much about it. Lastly, he wishes me a nice day, well I hope you have a nice day too, INUFAN, and yes, I'll be waiting for your review of this chapter. Now I can continue laughing.

**_Coco Cow_** - Yeah, I know some things can get confusing sometimes. It doesn't help that my updates have been sporadic, so I feel the some people have forgotten things that happen previously (hell I know I have). As for mysterious characters, I just like them.

**_saiko fluffy - _** Yes, I think a lot of people could forsee some things that would happen in this chapter but that's only a small part and there's much unexpectedness happening as well (I know that sentence sucked but oh well).

**_TheyCallMeTaterSalad_** - Nicely chosen name. I know it can take a while to read my fic, thanks for doing so, even if it took forever. I'd tell you go check out moonsilver's Bet Saga (based on Tenchi) but she pulled all her stuff from ff. It might still be on her web site. That story is made up of 6 stories (The Bet, The Gamble, The Pledge, The Challenge, The Promise, and The Bet Saga Short Stories). All together when copied into Word, it takes up 854 pages in Times New Roman font size 12. Don't look at me weird, I was bored at work one day. I've read those stories through a couple of times. Lastly, amagoning imagining. lol

**_Knight-of-the-Wolf_** - You caught me there. The whole block out the scents, got kind of lost in all my brainstorming. Over time I have lost a few of the ideas I started with. Kudos for catching that.

**_SereneDolphin_** - It just happened to be lucky that I caught you on such a day. While this is updating on a Sunday so no exams, I hope you enjoy it none the less.

**_Angel452_** - You know most people accept that Sess was going to bring Kagura back rather than it screwing up the future, which would be really fun. I like your thinking.

Well that about wraps that up. See you next time.

Just kidding. Even though INUFAN was enough entertainment for the whole chapter. Let's start the show: (btw, get it through your heads, I don't own IY)

**A Wish From the Heart**

**Chapter 63: Loose Ends**

Kagura talked in a small whisper that almost no one could hear but that didn't matter to her. She only intended for one person to hear her. "I'm sorry to disappoint you yet again. It seems I wasn't strong enough to make it through this battle. Doesn't matter to me, maybe I was too weak to see this battle through, but for some reason its comforting to know you're here when I die. My death is worth something. I was able to protect people worth protecting but that's not all," Kagura said as she slowly pulled a small object out of her hair. "I guess you could say its my gift to you before I go, just do yourself a favor, don't get caught by it."

Kagura opened the small fan that she had kept hidden within her hair. She channeled all her remaining energy including her life energy into the fan. With the last of her effort she swung the fan towards Cerberus, "FUUJIN NO MAI DANCE OF BLADES!" she screamed as the attacked roared towards the demon. "Now die, you bastard." And with that Kagura landed on the ground, dead.

Sesshoumaru didn't have to see the blast to know it was coming. The power it gave off was overwhelming. Cerberus could fully see it. He acted quickly and extended his hand out towards Sesshoumaru. It meant nothing to the demon lord as he used Toukijin to cut straight through Cerberus' hand. What he hadn't expected was the forked hand to quickly wrap around him and harden.

"You'll make a nice shield," Cerberus said evilly as Sesshoumaru swung his sword at the hand which held him yet it did nothing to free him. "Nothing you can use will free you, prepare for death."

"Well then how about I give it a try," Inuyasha said as he ran towards them sword in hand.

"It won't make a diff.." Cerberus was saying as he could feel the blade tear through his arm.

Inuyasha just continued moving as he grabbed ahold of his brother and pulled him out of the way just as Kagura's blast struck Cerberus. "That was close," Inuyasha said.

Sesshoumaru was just about to speak when he was cut off. "Ha ha ha ha ha." The evil laugh arose from inside the cloud of dust where Cerberus has been struck. "She thought that would defeat me," Cerberus' voice rang out, it may not have been as strong as before but he was still alive. The brothers watched the cloud of smoke as he blow away. There standing on one leg was half the foe that was there before. "She may have wounded me but I can return later and she'll still be dead. I can't be defeated so easily."

"Then accept my offer of death," Sesshoumaru said from behind him. The evil detachment had no time to react as Sesshoumaru brought down Toukijin with full force. Any final words Cerberus might have had died with him as the rest of his body was disintegrated by Toukijin's power.

"Is it finally over?" Kagome asked as she approached the brothers.

"Yeah, he's dead for good now," Inuyasha confirmed. "Here." Inuyasha handed Kagome back her sword, while Sesshoumaru looked on and understood.

"Where are the kids?" Kagome asked with a bit of worry.

Sesshoumaru motioned to a section of the forest, "Rin," the demon lord called out with only a small raise in his normal voice. The teenage girl came running out of the forest and headed straight for the inu-youkai.

"I'm sorry, Lord Sesshoumaru," Rin cried, "It's my fault Miss Kagura got hurt and you almost got hurt too. I'm sorry."

"Rin, enough crying. It will not take back what you did, you can only move forward and try to make up for things you have done wrong," Sesshoumaru warned.

"You do plan to bring Kagura back, don't you?" Kagome asked. Not getting much of a response she continued, "That's why you have Tensaiga."

"Do not dare tell me what I must do," the demon warned. Kagome was going to reply back but Inuyasha put a hand up to stop her. Sesshoumaru looked at the crowd around him. First to Kagome, then to Inuyasha, continuing to Kohaku, who had joined them when Rin came out. He then continued on looking at Rin and lastly at Kagura, who still lay there on the ground lifeless.

"You do owe her," Inuyasha told his brother. The hanyou was then faced with the intense gaze of his brother's. "She protected your ward with her life. She did so when you were unable to. I believe that means you owe her." This time Inuyasha stared right back at his brother as Sesshoumaru thought it over.

"I will have no such thing as a debt lingering on my honor, and that is the only reason I do this," Sesshoumaru said as he slowly withdrew Tensaiga. Once removed from its sheath, Tensaiga seemed to resonate much more than it had ever previously. The noble youkai could see the minions as they wrapped their chains around Kagura, almost ready to take her to the next world. With one fast and quick strike, all of them were gone. Sesshoumaru watched as the chains broke off of Kagura's body and the color returned to her skin.

Rin's eyes lit up as Kagura groaned as if waking up in the middle of a nice dream. The only difference was Kagura was glad to be waking up at all. "Any care to explain?" Kagura asked dazedly.

"Yeah, you protected Rin and Kohaku with your life, thank you for that," Kagome said. "While your final attack didn't kill Cerberus, it wiped out half of his body and Sesshoumaru finished him off."

"So I guess you get the points for killing him," Kagura said.

"I wasn't aware I was doing this for points," Sesshoumaru replied.

Kagura groaned again, "you gotta learn to take a joke." Kagura had a thoughtful expression on her face before something dawn on her. "So if I was dead, that means," she said as she looked to Sesshoumaru, "you revived me. And here I thought you didn't care."

"_He only did it cause Inuyasha practically trapped him into doing it_," Kagome thought but before she could say anything to counter Kagura, Inuyasha stopped her once again. She questioningly at him but he only shook his head.

"Are you saying you would rather have stayed dead?" Sesshoumaru asked with his usual serious tone. "That could be arranged."

"I think I'd rather stay alive," Kagura confirmed.

"Well I think you should be dead," Kouga said as he approached the group.

Inuyasha groaned. "I must be psychic. I saw this coming a mile away," he whispered to his mate. Kagome nodded her head in response.

"Is there some problem here?" Sesshoumaru asked. Ayame just shrugged her shoulders unaware of Kouga's reasons for anger.

"Yes, there is a problem. She is responsible for killing most of my tribe," Kouga said pointing at Kagura. "I vowed that day, that I would make sure every part of Naraku died."

About the same time, Kagome noticed a look of fear in Rin's eyes. She walked over and talked with the little girl. Inuyasha just barely made out what the two were talking about. From what he heard though, he gained an idea as to how to solve the entire problem.

"Is this true?" Sesshoumaru asked Kagura, who was still lying on the ground.

"Yes, one of the first things Naraku had me do when I was created was to lure the wolf tribe into a trap and kill them. It was to turn Kouga against Inuyasha," Kagura told the demon lord truthfully.

At this point, Inuyasha chose to butt in to the feud. "Sess, for this I think you need to appoint a mediator."

The noble was not happy at the unapproved abbreviation of his name being used. "Why should I do that?"

"Because you, in some matter of the sense, are involved in this conflict," Inuyasha replied. The hanyou then quickly cut off his half-brother's reply, "Just shut up and let me do the talking."

By now everyone attention was diverted to Inuyasha, whether it was Sesshoumaru's glare of I'm-going-to-kill-you, or everyone else's he's-going-to-kill-you. This didn't matter to Inuyasha though, it got everyone's interest, which is exactly what he was looking for.

"Ok, so here's my ruling. Kagura will die," Inuyasha announce as if it was nothing.

"WHAT?" Kagura and Kagome seemed to shout at the same time. "Are you nuts?" Kagome yelled at him as she marched up to him.

"Did I say I was finished," he looked at her intently. "As I was saying, Kagura will die, because she killed your clan. But for her to die, the charges against her must be true. So your tribe will have to die," Inuyasha said seriously.

"Have you gone insane!" Kouga demanded.

"Your tribe is alive, isn't it?" Inuyasha said back.

"Yes but only because your wish happened to revive them, otherwise they would still be dead," Kouga answered. "Kagura has never been brought to call for her crime."

"I'd like to remind you, she did it under Naraku's orders. But that doesn't matter right now," Inuyasha said. "Personally if you aren't happen with plan number one, I think two might be better. Plan number two, is that you forget about your grudge."

"Why should I do that?" Kouga asked.

"Cause it'd help you in the long run," Inuyasha offered but Kouga didn't seem to buy it. "Your clan died and was brought back to life. Kagura died and has been brought back to life. I'd say you're even."

"Kagura did not die for killing my clan. She died on her own terms."

Inuyasha could only groan. "I didn't want to have to do this, but you forced me to. Don't say I didn't warn you," Inuyasha advised. "Kouga, do you remember how we met?"

"Yeah but what does that have to do with anything?" Kouga asked. The half demon didn't replied but only waved a continuing hand at Kouga. "We met when I was searching for jewel shards, but this is totally off topic."

"To be more precise, we met after I kill some of your wolves, correct?" Kouga only nodded in response. "What were your wolves doing at the time?" Inuyasha made sure to draw everything out so that everyone would understand.

"They were attacking humans in a village, though I haven't let them do that since," Kouga added.

"Ahh but as your saying with Kagura, one mistake of the past could cost your life," Inuyasha warned. "Do you Rin?" Inuyasha said as he motioned to the frightened teenager, who was being comforted by Kagome and Kohaku.

"No, I don't really know her," though Kouga was slowly understanding what Inuyasha was getting at.

"She's a ward of my Sesshoumaru's. You may not recognize her but she knows you. You see, she was one of the people in that village. Your wolves killed her." Inuyasha let the news sink in for everyone before continuing. "So you see, now Sesshoumaru has a dispute with you. I believe by right that could mean he could call for your and your clan's death."

Kouga had no reply to this. He knew what Inuyasha spoke was true. He and his clan had been response for killing a charge of the Lord of the Western Lands. Even though he hadn't known of the girl, the blame still fell on them, and it fell hard.

Sesshoumaru was contemplating the information. Of course he had known of Rin's death but had not known of Kouga's involvement.

"Once again, I propose that you drop your grudge against Kagura and in return you and you clan stay alive," Inuyasha said.

Kouga thought over the decision carefully. His anger at Kagura being revived had subsided and he had a cooler head then before. This choice would change many of the things he knew. It was a few minutes later when he spoke and he did so kneeling on one knee. "I will excuse Kagura for her act as long as you, Lord Sesshoumaru, forgive me for the act which I unknowingly committed against you."

"Be gone, wolf. I do not wish to hear about this matter again," Sesshoumaru warned. Everyone knew that the proud youkai would never openly forgive someone so that was as close as he would get.

Kouga bowed his head. "Ayame, we are going," he said as he stood up. Before leaving though, Kouga turned to Rin. "I'm sorry," he told her and then ran off with his mate not long behind him.

"I can't believe you actually let him go," Kagura said. "I'd figure you would have had his head on a platter."

"He let him go because he had no qualm against him," Inuyasha said. The wind sorceress looked at him confused. "I never said Rin was Sess's ward when Kouga's wolves killed her. Rin should actually be thankful of Kouga for that. She may not be hanging around with Sesshoumaru now, if he hadn't had to revive her."

"I never thought of it like that," Rin said softly.

"See everyone goes home happy," Inuyasha said proudly.

Kagura just hung her head, "speak for yourself. If you forgot, my home is demolished. That bastard destroyed it," she said.

"Was it tough to build?" Kagome asked.

"I'd have no idea, I didn't build it," Kagura said. "It was a nice abandoned place I found. I have no idea how to build a house."

Rin got a gleam in her eye, "Lord Sesshoumaru, could Miss Kagura stay with us," the hyper girl asked her father figure.

"Rin, I can't do that," Kagura said, her face blushing.

"Nonsense, I don't think it'd hurt him," Inuyasha added. Sesshoumaru seem glower at his brother. "Oh don't look at me. You're staying at one of father's places. I've been there, there's far too many rooms, don't tell me you can't spare a single room."

"Besides," Kagome added. "You could just stay there until you get a new place, Kagura."

"You make it sound as if he's already said yes, and we know he won't," Kagura said motioning to Sesshoumaru.

"It is not originally my house, so rightfully have no say over who stays there," Sesshoumaru said. "Either way I am going." Without much more being said, Sesshoumaru turned around and started off.

"Arg, he's so stubborn," Kagura said.

"Yeah and you can deal with him," Inuyasha said. He then said to Sesshoumaru, "oh don't forget, you owe me for saving your butt."

"I don't recall asking for your help," Sesshoumaru replied.

"Yeah sure, but you still owe me. Don't worry I won't come calling for about two centuries," Inuyasha replied. Everyone looked at him but he said no more.

Kagura just sighed and got up to follow Sesshoumaru. She didn't think anyone would leave her alone if she didn't. "Come on, Rin. Let's go before we lose him." It was then everyone noticed the painful look in Rin's gaze directed at Kohaku.

"Good bye, Kohaku," she said with a small tear.

"Be careful," the boy said in reply.

For yet another time that day, Inuyasha found himself with another good idea. "Hey Sess," the hanyou called out. When the dog demon turned around Inuyasha continued, "In a few months its gonna be 5 years since we defeated Naraku. We're gonna have a feast at our place, you're welcome to come." Inuyasha then turned to Kagura, "you're welcome to come as well."

Kagome understood and turned to Kohaku, "you let your family know that they're invited too."

"Thank you," Kagura said pulling a feather out of her hair, and turned to Rin, "let go." This time Rin took off with Kagura, with a smile on her face.

"Well I think its time we get going as well," Inuyasha voiced to his group.

"Yeah, your sister's probably worried like crazy," Kagome said to Kohaku, who could only scratch his head in response.

**&&&&&**

Inuyasha looked to his mate. He could tell something was bothering her. They had safely brought Kohaku back to his family who was overwhelmed to see him again. He promised them that he would train hard so as to not get kidnapped again. Inuyasha knew it was really cause he had someone he wanted to protect now. Kagome and Sango had talked for a bit, while Inuyasha and Miroku exchanged stories.

As Inuyasha combed through the last few days he couldn't pinpoint what was disturbing Kagome. He finally gave up, "Kagome, what's wrong?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Something's eating at you, I can tell. What is it?"

"After Kagura was revived, why didn't you let me tell her the truth?" Kagome inquired.

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha asked. He had an idea what she was referring to but he wanted her to be more specific.

"Sesshoumaru didn't just decide to revive her. You had to give him a reason before he did it." Kagome's answer wasn't as she expected. Inuyasha was laughing. "What's so funny?"

"I didn't give him a reason," Inuyasha with a smile, "I gave him an excuse."

_**&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#**_

Well we're just about to a close. If anyone didn't like that closer, make sure you know what the last sentence is saying and you might understand. Well I guess its time for my closing remarks. Well I got good news and bad news. Bad news is that as you all know, this is the last regular chapter. All that's left is the epilogue. Good news (I've been wanting to spill the beans forever): the epilogue will be a two parter (so there's 2 chapters remaining, no there is no sequel). The first part will probably be a bit short but the second part will be longer.

Well I've got something I'm going to cover in each of my closing from now until the end. Just for a heads up. Next chapter, I'm gonna mention the length and time its taken to write this story, and last one I've got something to say about the reviews. This chapter though, its about the title. And I'm going to leave you with a trivia question:

**Believe it or not (**queue Ripley's theme) **This story was not originally titled "A Wish From the Heart." That title was decided on when I posted the story on this site. When I started it though I called it by a different name, as a matter of fact, the Word file which holds this story, still retains the original title.**

**What do you think the original title was? (HINT: its only 2 words)**

I changed the title simply because I thought this one was better. Though I originally thought I'd be changing to something else later on. A Wish from the Heart though was a good catchy title and people really liked the story so the title stayed put.

Okay so the last thing is my send off, which I won't get to do too many more times. **takes a deep breath** Join me next time for:

**Epilogue - Part 1: The Past and the Present**

followed by:

**Epilogue - Part 2: The Present and the Future**


	65. Epilogue – Part 1: The Past and The Pres

Well I've managed to update pretty quickly, though in the mean time ff(.)net seems to be getting more and more oppressive. First they told people not to put up chapters just for review responses and to use the time before or after a chapter and now they're telling us we can't do that. Well what about those anonymous reviews? I get some constant ones and I don't feel like telling people they have to register just to hear back from me. Besides I'm not going to reply to 20 people just because all of them couldn't understand that Tai was 3/4 **human** (previous issue, just using it as an example). Technically none of this is covered in their TOS. It says I have to obey their rules but I haven't seen one page yet that is dedicated to rules, so are they trying to tell me that there are none? Besides removing characters from my story without my permission, that doesn't sound totally right (if it's even legal). I'm done ranting.

Back on topic, there will be no more "Review Responses." There will be "Author Notes." This are statements made to all general readers, if you left a review something I say might in my notes pertain to it, it might not.

**AN 1: The original title - **I left it open last chapter for you to guess the original title of this story. By the time the first guess was made, I realized I should have given you more hints. I should have at least mentioned that Wish was not one of the two words that made up the title. I had given up thinking that anyone would guess it, cause everyone was using Wish. Then along came **_jon58840 _**and he totally blew me out of the water by being correct. Do I know you in reality, jon? Otherwise how did you know? His guess was correct. The original title of A Wish from the Heart was plain and simple _Loved Ones_. Thanks to jon58840, maroongoddess, and DL and IY-luver for playing a fun game of trivia.

**AN 2: The Tetsusaiga - **Okay most people have been kind to point out that the Tetsusaiga has more than just the Wind Scar and Backlash Wave (not counting my own and using simple English names). I want to make it clear now, I know of the barrier breaking "Red" Tetsusaiga. That I was fully aware of as I was writing the story. I see that though as an ability and not an attack. As for the other one, the crystal one (I don't feel like looking up the name of it), I was not aware of it when publishing this story, technically I don't think they had even reached that point in the anime when I started writing this story. I've just kinda decided to use my (home-made) artistic license (and my bout of delusion) to kind of ignore the attack. I know its cool but I really didn't want to be throwing off the story too much. Maybe if I go back and revise the story some time I'll make room for the other _official_ attack. Btw, thanks for the interesting timeline jon. And yes there is a Dragon-Scaled Tetsusaiga but to see it you have to read the manga.

**AN 3: Inuyasha OOC - **(This comment goes out to all but also to warlord2005, who specifically asked for a response but since he reviewed anonymously (not your fault) by ff(.)net's policy I can't reply to directly) - Okay many people have thought IY at times acted out of character and I will admit this did occur sometimes in earlier chapters but I don't think this argument holds 100 percent true now. I have definitely tried to show IY growing over time. If you go back to the beginning of the anime, you'll notice he's not exactly the same from later on. As time goes on, IY becomes more and more open to those around him. He does also manage to use his head quite a few times. So if you start to apply that to my story, the group defeats Naraku approximately 3 years after the start of the anime, giving IY quite a bit of time to grow. Then you have the effect of his parents, Midoriko passing him knowledge, and living in Kagome's time. By the time you reach his fight with Kitiara, I think it would be safe to say he starts using his head a bit more wisely. Heck I know my school at least tried to make me think for myself. After that more time goes by. When we finally reach the dispute between Kouga and Kagura, five more years have gone by and IY's life has been pretty peaceful, giving him more than enough time to reflect on many things. Now IY may not be a Harvard lawyer but I don't think you have to be to dissolve the dispute. Also as you'll see in this chapter, IY has done even more think (maybe that's why I smelled smoke). Besides, in the last chapter, I don't think I could have seen Kagome saying "Okay, Kagura will die." Just not Kagome's style.

Well now that my **Author Notes** are done. We can get down to the story. Contrary to my own thinking, this chapter turned out longer than I expected (just like this whole damn story). and let me remind everyone there has been no point in this life (or any previous ones I've had) that I ever owned IY. BTW, have a nice Thanksgiving.

**A Wish From the Heart **(formally known as Loved Ones)

**Epilogue – Part 1: The Past and The Present**

Inuyasha stood outside his home as guests came. For some it had only been a couple months, but others it had been years. Though as they came together, it seems as only days. Inuyasha's parents had been one of the first to arrive. Inuyasha spent quite a bit of time explaining the Cerberus incident to his father. The former lord had been glad to hear that his sons had actually mange to get along and fight together. Izayoi spent her time talking with Kagome about various things.

Next to arrive was Miroku and Sango's family as well as their own little family. Since returning Kohaku to Sango and the others approximately five months ago, Sango and Miroku's son, Genji, was born. While the child has gotten much attention from Sango and others, it has been nothing compared to how much time Miroku has spent with him.

Next to show up had been Shippo and his family. Kagome had especially welcomed the kitsune cub with open arms. They could both see that he had grown up since they last saw him. He was started to get a bit taller and also stronger. Inuyasha joked with him but he could sense the kitsune had probably being doing some sort of training. Inuyasha figured this was probably to make sure history didn't repeat itself.

Even as Kagome entertained everyone in the house, Inuyasha stood outside waiting for the final group to show up. He wasn't even sure if they would but he kept his hopes high. Though it was almost an hour after the other groups had shown, Inuyasha could see the final set approaching. Rin waved her hand at Inuyasha as they approached. She had a smile of anticipation on her face.

"The others are inside. Go ahead and join them," he told Rin, though he knew she was only looking for one person. He then turned to the other two, "Took you long enough."

"Don't even start," Kagura warned. "Blame on Mr. Stoic Face here. He didn't want to come but I made him since I knew Rin wanted to. Besides, if I'm coming I'm sure as hell going to drag him along."

"There was no dragging necessary," Sesshoumaru said. "And I don't exactly recall saying that I didn't want to go."

"Yeah but you sure weren't in any bit of a hurry to come either," Kagura said.

"Okay okay, that's enough," Inuyasha said before thinking, "_I have no idea how you two are going to manage to put up with one another._"

Kagura got a serious look on her face then, "other than Rin, I wouldn't have come. I don't even belong here."

"That's nonsense," a new voice said. Everyone turned to see Inutaisho standing looking at them. "This is a feast to gather to rejoice for fun and remind everyone that your enemy, Naraku, is gone. Are you sad that he's gone?"

"Hell no," Kagura said pointedly.

"_That's Kagura for you, doesn't care who you are, she'll tell you exactly what's on her mind_," Inuyasha thought.

"Then that's exactly why your welcome," the Inu taiyoukai said. "Well that and because you're the only woman whose gotten that close to my son. As far as I'm concerned, you're as good as family."

Kagura had no quick retort that time. She looked to the ground to hide her face turning red, "I think I'll go check on Rin." With that she left quickly so as to not get embarrassed again.

"Father, I apologize for Kagura's informal tone towards you…" Sesshoumaru said.

"There's no need to apologies. She merely spoke her mind, albeit a bit loudly, but if that's what I have to put up with for you to get a mate, I have no problem," Inutaisho said which managed to silence his son. He then went inside to join the others.

That left Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru standing outside with almost no words between the brothers. The silence carried on for a while before, Inuyasha got bored. "Come on, let's go inside. I'm getting hungry."

Before Sesshoumaru moved though he decided to talk further, "I have thought it over and though I do not like it, I will honor the debt which I owe you."

"You mean the one for saving your butt against Cerberus?" Inuyasha asked. His half brother nodded in confirmation. "No problem, like I said, I'll come calling in about two hundred years, so don't forget." With that the brothers walked inside to join the others in the feast.

**&&&&& 200 years later &&&&&**

Kagome walked outside of house, which she had shared with her mate of two centuries. As she looked around, she was still grateful to her friends and family. They had built the wonderful mansion size home as a sort of wedding present. As she looked around, she allowed herself to take in the beauty around her. The forest and the land around their house was still so stunning. She had seen in other areas, the clearing of land as population increased. She was a bit sad, since she knew how much of the forest was still going to disappear yet, but that didn't stop her from enjoying it while it was still there.

Kagome was literally shaken out of her thoughts by a small little girl at her knees. "Is lunch almost ready, mommy?" the girl asked.

"Yes, it is Maya. I was just about to let everyone know," Kagome told her youngest child. Maya was just over 45 years old but by demon years it seemed like 5. **(Realize if you don't count 50 years tied to the tree, Inuyasha is 150 when he meets Kagome and he looks about her age, which would make him roughly 15-16, so 1 demon year per 10 human years. Don't think about this too much, I'm not going to strictly adhere to it anyway)**

Kagome turned to her daughter, "You might want to go inside and eat," Kagome advised her child.

"Okay mommy," Maya said as she ran into the house for food.

Kagome then turned toward the forest and took a deep breath, "LUNCH IS READY!" she yelled out. She may have doubted whether anyone heard her but in a few seconds she could she her son rushing towards the house at full speed.

He almost wasn't able to stop when he reached his mother. Not even taking the time to catch his breath, he looked around for anyone else. "I beat them, I beat them both," he cheered to himself.

The boy was soon joined by another girl, slightly older than him. "Don't even start. The only reason you beat me was because you tripped me at the start. I'd have beaten you here by a mile otherwise."

"Don't blame me just because your clumsy," he responded.

Kagome could see the a fight brewing. "Reia, Hiko, enough!" Kagome said to them in a slightly raised voice. If she didn't they wouldn't even hear her and they'd start fighting. "It's time to eat, inside."

As they went inside, Inuyasha was at the table to greet them, "What took you two so long?" he asked as he picked at his food. Both of the kids groaned. He had still managed to beat them both.

"You two didn't actually think you'd beat your father in a race, did you?" Kagome asked with a small laugh. Neither child answered the obvious question as they sat at the table and joined everyone else in eating. While eating, Kagome looked around the table as she had a habit of doing. Before meeting Inuyasha, she never would have guess she would have been blessed with such a wonderful family. The oldest child, Reia, was about 13 ½ old in demon years, while Hiko was about 12. Both of them had short silver hair just like their father minus the length. This trait showed even more in the way they acted, both took after their father, competitive about everything. It didn't matter what the subject was, they fought over who was better. Maya on the other hand was the exact opposite, she had long black hair with silver tips at the end. It was something that baffled Kagome, she would give Maya a hair cut and in a few days the tips of her all black hair would be silver. She didn't mind though, she thought it looked very good on her. The way Maya acted was also very different from her siblings. She took after her mother, she didn't really like to fight at all and she made it known that any fighting she did know she wanted to learn from her mother. That wasn't to say she didn't like her father, on the contrary, whenever she got the chance she was always hanging all over him. She was the youngest and tended to be spoiled a little.

Another reason Kagome didn't mind training Maya was that she sensed that her own miko abilities resided more in Maya than the other two children. Izayoi had been able to confirm this at their latest family reunion, which had been held just a few months ago. The families managed to get together every five years still, though this one hadn't gone over totally great. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru almost came to blows.

"Kagome, what's bothering you?" Inuyasha asked.

"Just thinking about the reunion," she said. He knew that she thought about it a bit.

"Don't worry about it. Though it took some convincing, Sesshoumaru remembered that he owed me," Inuyasha said with a smile, "It's not like I asked for his first-born."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome looked sternly at him.

"You know what I meant," Inuyasha said. "Anyway I have to go welcome our guest." Though Kagome heard no knock at the door, she knew Inuyasha could smell when visitors approach, so she let him go.

Inuyasha had just finished eating when he caught the scent of their guest. He opened the door just as the ten year old looking boy made it to the door. "Welcome, Tai." Inuyasha greeted his nephew.

"Good afternoon, Uncle Inuyasha," Tai said very solemnly. "I am here because my father made it apparent that I must, otherwise I would not be here."

Inuyasha just shuddered at the boy's tone of voice. It was bad enough Sesshoumaru was always emotionless but the boy being the same way. He couldn't figure out what Kagura managed to see in his brother. "Well I'm glad you came. You must be hungry, we were just having lunch," Inuyasha said as he welcomed Tai into the house.

"I'm not very hungry. Father said I would be coming to you for some training, though I do now know what you could teach me that he could not," Tai said still showing his disapproval of the situation.

"Can your dad tell me what you'll be doing in about 200 years?"

"He cannot foresee the future, yet it does not matter. I will choose what happens in my life, not some seer."

"_Yet I know for a fact how things will turn out_," Inuyasha thought. "Okay, can he teach you how to fully wield Tetsusaiga."

"There is no need for such a thing. Toukijin is far more powerful," Tai replied.

"That's where you are wrong. The power the sword can wield depends on the user. When it comes down to the power lying within the sword, your grandfather's power is greater than some detachment of Naraku." The kid still looked unimpressed at Inuyasha. If it hadn't been for the hair being black with streaks of silver, Inuyasha would have sworn he was having a staring contest with a chibi-Sesshoumaru. **(for some reason the author finds this concept hilarious)**

"Okay then, I challenge you," Inuyasha said.

"And what is your challenge, Uncle?" Tai asked.

"It would be better to call it a bet. If you can perform a small simple task, you won't have to undergo any training from me and you can leave right after doing it. If you can't, you have to grin and bear all of my training without any hassle. Do you accept?"

"For the chance to save myself the time of going to ridiculous training, I accept," Tai responded with total confidence.

"I want you to look at me and give me a real smile. Don't try to fake it, I'll be able to tell," Inuyasha said.

Tai looked at his half demon uncle in shock. He couldn't comprehend the task asked of him. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"It doesn't matter. You agreed to the deal. It was never stated whether the task had anything to do with the training or not. Now smile and leave, or don't and get comfortable."

"There is no reason to smile. To show emotion is to show weakness," Tai said as if he was quoting his father.

"And that is where you are wrong. To show your emotions to an enemy might show weakness but to not show emotions at all is to be weak within yourself," Inuyasha told the small kid. "In the normal human world, people who show no emotion at all tend to stand out, though not in a good way. In the future, you will need to blend in with humans and to do that you need to show a level of emotion. Over the next few years, you spend here you will not only learn how to use the Tetsusaiga but you will also learn more about yourself. Both the you now and the you, you must be in the future. In the future, your presence will be necessary but only if you are ready."

"Inuyasha, what's taking you so long," Kagome said as she came into the hallway. "Why, hello Tai. Why don't you join us for lunch?"

"I think I will. It seems I will be here for a while," Tai said as he walked towards the dining room. "Thank you, Aunt Kagome," he said showing respect as he had been taught.

"Lesson number one," Inuyasha said, "no more aunt and uncle. We're on a first name basis, got it?"

"Fine… Inuyasha," Tai said.

"How's it going?" Kagome asked Inuyasha as Tai joined his cousin's in eating.

"Well its going to take a while, but I think I can crack the shell he built around himself. Before you know it, he'll be acting like the Tai Azuma we remember."

"You may think its all fun, but you know your brother isn't going to be happy."

"Yeah I know," Inuyasha said with a grin. "Kagura will like it though. Hell, she was ready to pay me to do it, I just decided to turn her down."

Kagome just laughed. "Let's get back in there and make sure Reia and Hiko aren't choking," Kagome said remember a previous race to finish eating between the two. Her family wasn't exactly normal but she wouldn't have them any other way

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And so ends the next to last chapter of my story. One more chapter and its all done. Part of me can't wait while another has a tear in my eye. Now for a rant I will call my **After Notes** (same initials as previously used)

**AN: Story time and length - **As mentioned previously, now is my time to rant about how long this story truly is. I'm sure you all know by now (from my mentioning before) that this story was never supposed to be this long. There never was suppose to be an additional section for Sess/Kagura fluff. Heck there was never supposed to be a Tai Azuma. From my original planning this story I thought would only take 10-15 chapters and be no more than about 50 pages. The whole thing with IY's parents were planned but that alone took 15 chapters! From the beginning, I wasn't totally sure if I wanted to include Kagome's father or not, but I began wanted to make sure I covered everything (no plot holes), so that got added. The part with reviving Midoriko was a totally different idea but rather than write another story, I just merged it into this one and I think it worked out for the better. Part of my problem was that I never really sat down and thought how long it would take to cover what I wanted to do, not only that and I'd totally forgotten about the fluff chapters.

Well I'd expected that I'd have the story finished in 50 pages and at max 6 months time. Well I might have been able to make that (or year's time) if it hadn't been for class, laziness, and everything else that got in the way of my writing. So here I stand, almost 2 years after I started this story with 65 chapters instead of 15 and **270** **pages** instead of 50. You heard me right, whether you just read the story now, or have been following along since the beginning. This story is now 270 pages and that isn't even including all my author notes. This was done in Microsoft Word 12 font Times New Roman. So no big space to take up pages. It isn't the longest I've read though. If you think this is bad try reading Moonsilver's The Bet Saga (Tenchi), which when put together is approximately 854 pages, and I've read this story multiple times. Its just that good. I hope you think the same of mine to keep with it this long.

Well that's about it. Join me next time when I'll mention something wonderful about all your great reviews. Come next time for the final installment of A Wish From the Heart:

**Epilogue - Part 2: The Present and the Future**

To be **Concluded**


	66. Epilogue – Part 2 The Present and the

Well I know its been four months but what can I say. Part of me just didn't want this to end. Its been a very long and fun ride. I have all of you to thank. You out there who've reviewed, you've kept me going. You who've read, though your not making your presence known by reviewing I know your there all the same and I'm glad. This has to be the most successful story I've ever done (then again I haven't done much so that isn't say much). Well I've kept you long enough, I'll talk more after the chapter.

**A Wish From the Heart**

**Epilogue – Part 2: The Present and the Future**

Mr. and Mrs. Higurashi watched as Inuyasha and Kagome walked into the well house with Miroku and Sango. The four had stuck together for the entire week after beating the entire demon yakuza. It made Mr. Higurashi look at the hanyou in a new light. He had carried hatred for demons since his death and still hadn't trusted Inuyasha after learning of his close friendship to Kagome, but the man had realized he was wrong. Inuyasha had put his entire life on the line to protect his own daughter and for that he truly respected the boy.

Mrs. Higurashi turned to her husband, "I guess we should get ready."

"I'm not totally sure about this, but we might as well," her husband replied.

"Well I'll go see if Souta is ready, you check on father."

Mr. Higurashi nodded as they went in the house and readied themselves to leave.

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"So where are we going, huh?" Souta asked.

"Well, if I could answer that, I'd have told you already," Tai answered. He had been nice enough to pick them up and give them a ride even though they had no idea to where.

"Okay, I'm getting tired of this mystery stuff," Mr. Higurashi said. "You show up after that fight and say that we're invited to a causal gathering but you don't say anything else. Why won't you tell us who asked for us to come or where we're going."

"And I wish we could have brought Kagome and Inuyasha," his wife added.

"I wish I could answer your questions as well, but I was asked to see that you made it while not saying anything. As for Kagome and Inuyasha, well they have enough going on right now that they don't need to know about this." Tai didn't think it would have been this hard to get them to come. He'd only asked that they not tell the couple.

"You could at least tell me who you are? I only know you by the name Tai and I don't think that's enough to trust you on," Mr. Higurashi continued.

"Well right now I'm going by the name Tai Azuma, but the last name does tend to change every fifty to hundred years."

"So you're a demon, cool," Souta replied though he didn't notice his father stare at him.

"Well we're here," Tai said as he pulled into a big driveway. The family hadn't even noticed that they had left Tokyo and made it into a more rural area. The family looked on in amazement as they gaze at an old and very beautiful castle. As they looked around they noticed all the wooded areas blocking view and giving the inhabitant very good privacy.

As soon as the SUV came to a stop, Tai jumped out. "Arg, I hate these things," he said to no one in particular as he gave the front tire a slight kick.

"Then why do you have it?" Mrs. Higurashi asked as she exited the vehicle.

"It's not mine, it's my fathers. I only needed it so as to transport you here, otherwise I'd walk. I enjoy walking and running much more."

"Well that's nice. It's good to get plenty of exercise."

Before Tai could even get a response out a figure ran by him and the family causing a small gust of wind. Tai wanted to yell but was cut off by yet another one. The Higurashi guests were confused by the occurrences but were more surprised when Tai started to growl.

"HIKO! REIA!" Tai screamed out.

"No need to shout," a man a bit older than Tai with silver hair said as he stopped right in front of Tai. "Don't blame me, she started it."

"If I remember correctly, you challenged me," a woman said as she halted right next to Hiko. That didn't stop her from swinging a fist at him.

Hiko quickly dodged it though. "You're just being a sore-loser cause I beat you last time."

Tai performed a quick roundhouse kick but both manage to dodge it and continued fighting amongst themselves. They continued around the immense lawn of the castle. Besides the fighters the only other person enjoying the fight was Souta who looked on in astonishment.

"This is why I don't get along with them, they can't get along, not even for five minutes!" Tai shouted out to the sky.

"I see our guests have arrived," came another female voice. Though this person walked slowly up to Tai. "If you'd like I'll take care of the two."

"Please, if I have to they'll spend the rest of today taking care of injuries," Tai replied with a smile.

"You don't have to be so violent," the soft voice said.

"Those two are violent, not me," Tai reminded her.

"Hey," Souta asked. "Is she going to be able to stop them by herself.

"She's a lot more skilled than she looks, just watch." Souta turned towards the woman with long black hair with silver highlights. She seemed to just stand there as if doing nothing while at the same time you could tell she was concentrating. The moment she opened her eyes it seemed like time had stopped, though that had only been for the fighting pair. They stood frozen in mid attack. He continued to watch as they floated over towards the girl.

"No fair, Maya! You're interfering. Besides I was about to beat Hiko into the ground," Reia said.

"You wish," Hiko replied. "Now let us down so we can settle this."

"Enough." Gone was the soft gentle voice replaced by a strict commanding voice that almost forced them to listen. "In case you haven't noticed we have guests, so if I were you I'd behave. If you keep this up, your going to get in trouble." The two still frozen in mid hair just snorted and looked away. "Now I'm going to let you go but if you keep this up, I'll give you a much more permanent timeout, understand."

Neither of the two replied but she knew they got the point. With but a blink, Hiko and Reia found themselves back on the ground on their own feet. Maya then turned to Tai and the others and spoke in her soft voice again, "see that wasn't so hard."

Tai just leaned over to Souta, "See what I mean, she can be even scarier sometimes."

"Now you're the one scaring our visitors, if you want you can take them inside. I'm going to make sure Hiko and Reia do the same."

"Okay, see you in there," Tai said as he quickly moved away from Maya and led the family towards the house.

"Who were they?" Mrs. Higurashi asked innocently.

"That was Reia, Hiko, and Maya. All siblings. Reia and Hiko are always fighting each other whenever they meet. They usually don't get together too much so it usually isn't a problem. Maya is the only person other than their parents that can control the two. She may be the youngest of the three but her power is different than theirs and it helps give her and edge."

"What do you …" but before Mr. Higurashi could finish his question the front doors of the house opened introducing even more people.

"_Jeez, luck is definitely on my side. All I'm doing today is dodging questions,_" Tai thought to himself.

"Tai, your finally here," a woman stepped out welcoming the entire group.

"Yes, mother. Is father here with you?" Tai didn't even have to answer before he saw his father walking outside as well.

"It's very nice to meet you. I'm Kagura," the wind sorceress said politely as she shook Mr. and Mrs. Higurashi's hand.

"It's nice to meet you as well," Mrs. Higurashi responded. "But I don't quite get why we are here? This seems to be a personal gathering. I don't think we belong here."

"Not at all. You are invited guests. Stay," Sesshoumaru said more as a statement then asking.

"You seem very familiar," the eldest Higurashi spoke for the first time.

"Please forgive me," Tai said, "This is my father, Sesshoumaru."

Souta's eyes seemed to light up at the mention of the demon's name. "Are you Inuyasha's brother?" the boy asked with excitement. The demon lord nodded in response. "Cool."

"Wait," Mr. Higurashi said. "If he's Inuyasha's brother, then that would make you Inuyasha's nephew. Why didn't Inuyasha say anything?"

"Well I kept my relation to him a secret until recently. He was quite shocked as well," Tai replied.

"This is so great," Souta said. "Can either of you do neat attacks like Inuyasha?"

Kagura had to smile at the boy's energetic nature. "They can do some things but they don't like to show off," she said answering the kid, "besides the food is almost ready we should go in and gather with everyone else. Please," Kagura said as she gestured her hand to the inside of the house.

When they got inside the family found them welcomed once again. "So we finally meet at last. I was beginning to think that Tai got lost," a man's voice called from the middle of the main room.

"Tai, don't tease the boy," Izayoi told her husband. "You must be a little confused," she said looking at the families faces.

"A little doesn't even begin to cover it," the Higurashi grandfather commented.

"Yes well it would help if you'd known everything to begin with, but these things can't be helped. I'm Izayoi and this is my husband, Inutaisho."

"She usually calls me Tai, so don't worry when you can't tell which of us she's talking to," Inutaisho stated while motioning to Tai.

"I remember, you're Inuyasha's father and mother. Its so good to meet you," Mrs. Higurashi said warmly. "You have a very nice and caring son."

"I just wish he would show that side of him a little more," Izayoi said. "Even after all he's gone through, he only trusts a few people with his feelings."

"I'm guessing the reason we were asked to come here is to talk about Inuyasha and Kagome's relationship?" Kagome's father asked trying to get some straight answers.

"In a way, yes," the old demon lord answered. "It's a bit complicated but things will be explained shortly." He then had a moment of recollection. "I'm sorry I'm being a bad host. Please let us go into the living room, I have some tea prepared."

The family followed Inuyasha's mother and father into the room, while Tai went to get the tea. Mrs. Higurashi looked at the everything in the house in total awe. "So this is your house. I must say I think it is beautiful."

"Well you can thank my wife," the inuyoukai said. "She keeps up with the decorations, I only see about the upkeep of other small areas."

"I'm pleased you like it," Izayoi responded. The next few minutes while waiting for the tea, Mrs. Higurashi asking many questions about the house and its origin. They had just finished talking about the design of the outside front lawn when Tai returned with enough tea and cups for everyone.

"Try to not fill up to much, we are having a feast shortly," Inutaisho advised.

"A feast? Is there really a need for one?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

"Well with the amount of people here today, I'd say a feast in necessary. Besides it's a bit of a tradition."

"Well I guess I'll just ask then," Mr. Higurashi said. "If this is some family thing, why did you decide to invite us?"

"Actually, we weren't the ones to invite you," Izayoi answered.

Before Mr. Higurashi could answer the obvious question, a voice answered for him, "I did." The voice had come from above them but before they could even look up the person responsible landed safely on the ground floor about ten feet away from everyone else.

"Inuyasha!" Souta yelled out at seeing the hanyou, though he didn't realize the half-demon was wearing different clothes than he had been wearing earlier in the day.

"That was dangerous, young man," Izayoi said already scolding her son. "There is no need to act out like that."

"It's just the sort of trade off that you get." everyone turned to see Kagome walking down a spiral staircase. "Inuyasha managed to quit being so rude and arrogant but in exchange we have to put up with him showing off."

"I'm not that bad," Inuyasha replied.

"Sure you aren't, it's just when guests come over," Kagome responded as she reached the ground floor. "Tai, thank you for bringing my family."

"No problem, you want me to check on the others?" Tai asked.

"Nah, I'll go get them," Inuyasha replied as he made his way outside.

"I don't get it," Mrs. Higurashi said. "Why did you tell us you were going into the past, if you we're coming here?"

"That's where it gets complicated." Kagome walked over and fixed her self a cup of tea. When she was satisfied with it she sat down on one of the chairs in the living room. Everyone else still in attendance did the same to make themselves comfortable. Once everyone was situated Kagome started again, "Its all a matter of how you look at it. Right now I am in the past, while at the same point, I'm in the present. And if you want to make it worse, to a certain extent I'm in the future."

The rest of her family was overcome with totally confusion. Kagome just laughed at the look on their faces. "Kagome, are you feeling well?" her father asked. "You don't even look right."

This comment broke Kagome totally out of her laughter. She knew they were starting to catch on. To her, it had been hundreds of years since she had been able to talk to them, though she had watched them from a distance. Just like Inuyasha she barely looked like she aged. Just as with Inuyasha after a certain point, the aging process slowed down, more than it already had been. With her father's words she realized it was time to be serious, it had been so long she had wanted to play around with them a bit, "_Wow, Inuyasha rubbed off on me more than I thought,_" Kagome realized. She turned to them with a serious look, "I'm actually feeling fine, but I guess I should make more sense. You see, I did leave to go back to the past this morning with Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku. But I actually didn't come back yet. Father, you said I look different. That is because to me a lot more time has passed then you think it has."

"The me, that is currently in the past, will return at the end of this weekend. She'll happen to have some surprising information."

"And what is that?" asked Mr. Higurashi. He wasn't sure if he was going to like more surprises.

"That Inuyasha and I are going to get married." Kagome walked as that info totally blew their mind.

Kagome's mother was the first to react. "That's so wonderful. I knew you two were going to end up together, I just never knew how long it would take you."

"So Inuyasha is really gonna be my brother?" Souta asked.

"So when are you two having the ceremony?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

"Well Souta, you can look at it this way, the Inuyasha you saw here is already your brother." Kagome then turned to her mother, "The ceremony is between the two who are in the past right now, and that will take place at the end of the school year. Like I said, to me lot more time has passed. After some long thinking, Inuyasha and I decided to live in the past."

"Kagome, are you sure about this?" her grandfather asked. "What about us? We'll never see you again?"

"Grampa, I think you're getting mixed up. The Kagome you had seen earlier tody will be getting married and going to live in the past. To me, that already happened."

"So you're really old too, right?" Souta asked.

"Yes, its one of the things about marrying Inuyasha, I've been able to live since Feudal times and I'll be able to live long after."

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" Izayoi asked trying to be sympathetic.

"I guess that means you're not our little girl anymore?" Mrs. Higurashi asked with tears coming down her face.

"Mama, I'll always be your little girl. I'm just not so little anymore," Kagome said. The joke got her mother to laugh rather than cry.

"So what was with all the secrecy? You could have just come to the house and told us this?" her father asked.

"Well I couldn't come right out and tell you, we had to wait until my earlier self had met up with Inuyasha, then wait until he made the wish, and then we couldn't do anything or else the yakuza might have caught on and changed things. So finally I decided I wanted it to be a surprise. Plus, we have a family get-together every five years or so and I figured you should be invited," Kagome said with a smile.

"Though to you it won't occur for a couple of months or so, you are part of the family," Inutaisho said proudly.

"I know it's a lot to throw at you all at once but…" before Kagome could finish Reia and Hiko came running by.

"This is your fault. If you'd watch where you going you wouldn't run into people," Reia yelled.

"Yeah, well if you'd stop for one second so I could beat you into the ground instead of running away, I wouldn't have to chase after you," Hiko spat back.

"Reia! Hiko!" Inuyasha yelled as he slowly walked in through the outside door. The two quarter demons dropped to the ground quickly on the second floor to stay hidden. "When I find you…"

"Inuyasha," Kagome said in a low and eerily calm voice. At the calling of his mate, Inuyasha let his anger subside and walked back over with Kagome. "Reia, Hiko, in case you haven't noticed we have guests. Now, where is your sister?"

"Right here, mother," Maya said walking in the same door Inuyasha had. "I wasn't able keep up with them, sorry."

"It's not your fault," Kagome replied not noticing the look on her family's faces.

"Did she just say mother?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.

Maya quickly turned her head away. "Whoops, I thought you had told them already," she told her mother.

"Well I'd told them most of it," Kagome said. "I hadn't gotten to that yet." Kagome turned back to her family who were still in repeated shock, "Well I guess I should introduce you to our children," Kagome said. "Reia, Hiko, down here now!" Before she even finished her command, the two were standing on the ground floor beside their fellow sister. "Mom, Dad, these are my three kids. Reia is the oldest, followed by Hiko, and then our youngest, Maya."

"Hey," Reia just waved while Hiko nodded.

"It's very nice to meet you," Maya said politely.

Kagome looked back at her family. Mrs. Higurashi in tears rushed over and grabbed Kagome, "Oh my little girl is all grown up," she said with tears in her eyes. She let go of Kagome just to grab a hold of Reia and Hiko at once. "And your children as so beautiful. They definitely have their parent's spirit." The two siblings squeezed their way out of the death grip as soon as they could. This caused her to turn to Maya. "And you have such wonderful hair. I'm so jealous," she said while hugging Maya now.

"I'm honored," Maya gasped out.

"Suck up," Reia glared at her sister.

Maya only mouthed out "_You want to trade places?_" But Reia only shook her head negative in response as more air was being choked out of Maya.

"As you can see, some of them have taken after their father a bit," Kagome warned.

"Well as I remember it, Inuyasha did have a lot of spirit as a kid," his mother defended. "Why I remember..."

"Mother please don't start..." Inuyasha asked but his mother had already walked over to Mrs. Higurashi and was chatting with her.

"Don't worry Inuyasha, I have a feeling that your mother will be hearing about me as a child soon enough," Kagome said.

The both of them looked around the room. Sesshoumaru, Kagura and Tai had left to room to prepare the table with food that had been sitting cold for the ten minutes. Inuyasha's father was talking with both of the adult male Higurashi's trying to make them as comfortable as possible. Meanwhile, Souta was talking with his nieces and nephew. With Reia and Hiko's attitude, it would have been easy to see Souta as one of their siblings rather than their uncle. "This family is definitely one of a kind," Inuyasha said.

"I'm glad. I like my family just like this," Kagome said. "You know over these hundred of years I always thought of things I wanted to tell my family and show them but now that their here I can barely think of everything."

"Well don't worry, we have all the time we need," Inuyasha told her. "That's why we went through all those journeys. To make sure everyone we cared for would be safe. We don't have Naraku or any demon yakuza after us now. It's these moments and all the future ones that make the hell we went through worth something."

Kagome looked up wide eyed at her husband and mate, "since when did you learn to have such a way with words?"

"We all grow and change, my love. As I have rubbed off on you, so you have done the same to me," with that Inuyasha leaned down and capture his mate's lips with his own. The two lovers held each other as they both thought of how far they had come. One had been a loner and the other lost; now here they stood always together and with their complete family around them, never alone.

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First off to anyone who says IY is OOC in that last bit, please expand you creative thinking and realize that people will change over the course of five hundred years. Also the title of this chapter and the previous one referred to IY and Kagome's look on time. The last chapter was the Past to Kagome while the present to IY, this one is the Present to Kagome while the Future to IY. The present is mentioned in both titles to try and refer to the fact that now that they're together, its the Present to them both.

To all of you who are reading this now, THANK YOU. I wasn't kidding when I said this is my most successful story yet. Even among IY fanfic stories, I don't often see stories get over two thousand reviews. I also don't think any of those stories were the first to the section. I truly believe this is the highest reviewed story by a newcomer to the section. When I first began this story, I was hoping that I'd reach 200 reviews but you've totally blown away my expectations. I don't know how some of you stuck with me (hell if I had been reading the story, I'd have jumped ship a long time ago, not only due to chapter delays but also plot). All of you truly make this story worthwhile.

Speaking of plot, to anyone who was waiting. Back in the battle with Kitiara, the older IY told Sess and Kagura that he knew they would come. That was because (my own) Tetsusiga's attack is amplified by the power the allies around them. The young IY had known of Sess and Kagura because he could sense it through the sword. He even felt his own power but didn't realize it until far later that his older self had been there.

In case anyone asks, no there will be no sequel. This story was far long enough. I covered everything I wanted to so there's no need for a sequel. I am currently thinking about doing another story. I've been working on a detailed outline for it - that way I have the story fully figured out and I know where its going to end. The only thing is that I want to write plenty to the story before I even bother to post it. That way there isn't much of a bother with posting delays. The chapters will be longer than this story but its shorter overall. The chapters will be on average of 12 pages and at this point I'm forseeing about 10 chapters ( I have to finish the outline first). Well I hope to write the story and not have it fall into my story-limbo. If your interested keep an eye out for anything from me or look to the Author Alert feature.

Well once again I feel I have much more to say and if I have to say it I'll make changes and upload it to this chapter, other than that, thank you very much for reading 280 pages of my drivel. I'm not kidding you, this turned out to be 280 pages, way more than I ever planned. Have fun and enjoy. This is Spider signing off.


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